Rating: 
Summary: Survival Story
Review: This book is possibly a more important historical document than a work of literature, especially when read in translation. This is the story of a single, ordinary day in the life of a labor camp prisoner in Stalin's Russia. The narrative is involving as it has that quality of documenting detail on which the character's survival depends, the way Dafoe documented Crusoe's life. You don't have to know very much about Russia or history to read this book. It is an account of simple human survival in the harshest and most dehumanizing conditions. Its honest, raw language and first-hand source places it into the tradition of modern realism. Ivan Denisovich is not out to teach us something about human resilience, only the desire to live. He is not out to make a profound political statement, since conclusions can be easily made by the reader. The conditions of life Solzhenitsyn depicts are so injust and harrowing that the reader has little choice but to denounce the regime which enacted such terror. In the end, this is a story of the simplest instinct of survival under the most artifical conditions of bondage.
Rating: 
Summary: It shows human life from a different view than usually shown
Review: I thourghly enjoyed this book. I felt it gave a wide eyed view to the Soviet prison camp system. In fact before reading this book I had no idea that the Soviets would keep prisoners in forced labor camps and almost work them to death. While reading this book I found many things that I wouldn't have believed if I knew that the author hadn't endured these hard ships. I also found it disturbing that if you take everything away from someone they will be reduced to animals, doing anything to please their owners, living each day meal to meal, and also coming to the point of betraying their fellow man for a little extra food. I guess you could say that this book shows what really happened in Russia. I think it show's true events even if the events described are not true in themselves. I believe that everyone should read this book so they can see that the world isn't a perfect place, that injustices happen in places that aren't supposed to have them, and even if something seems real it may not be.
Rating: 
Summary: Wouldn't really be worth your time, if it wasn't so short.
Review: I'd give this book 2 stars if it weren't for the historical and political significance it has accrued. Like a lot of "dissident" literature, Solzhenitsyn's work has become overrated. The narrative voice here changes abruptly from an erudite prose to "Shukhov" speaking colloquially, and back again. The political points made are as unsubtle as the characters themselves. And really, when you think about it, Ivan Denisovich Shukhov doesn't really have that bad of a day...just a dull one.
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Summary: Life in a labor camp
Review: The entirety of Alexander Solzhenitsyn's short novel "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich" takes place on a winter day in 1951 in a Siberian labor camp. The title character, Ivan Denisovich Shukhov, has been a prisoner there for the past eight years and has two more to go, provided his sentence isn't extended even longer for no reason at all. As a Soviet soldier in World War II, he was imprisoned after being accused of spying for the Germans, but the novel is concerned more with his daily routine at the camp than with the politics behind his imprisonment.Like anybody who's been in a highly structured and disciplined environment for a long time, Shukhov has developed his own individualized way of living day to day, bending the rules, avoiding punishment, and making life a little more bearable under the circumstances. Temperatures are commonly well below zero and the food is barely nutritional enough to keep the prisoners alive, but Shukhov has adapted well enough to know how to stay warm and make the most out of his meals. On this particular day, Shukhov's squad is forced to work construction; the novel describes how well Shukhov has honed his masonry skills as he expertly lays blocks and mortar building a wall for a building that will be used to hold future prisoners. Life at the camp has made him tough and independent; his only weakness is tobacco, for which he will beg, borrow, or steal. The novel is based on Solzhenitsyn's own experience as a labor camp prisoner under Stalin's reign, and therefore it has a sincere, natural, brutal quality that not even someone like Orwell could imitate. More than anything, though, it portrays a man whose spirit is strong enough to triumph over the most extreme adversity. Case in point: There is another prisoner named Fetiukov, a sniveling weasel who cries about his harsh treatment. Shukhov observes that Fetuikov won't survive his imprisonment because he has the wrong attitude, which is why he can't help but feel a little sorry for the guy. This work is not only an indictment of the machinations of one of the twentieth century's most oppressive political systems; it also succeeds as a concise study in humanism.
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Summary: A Glimpse Into the Horrors of Stalinist Work Camps
Review: Solzhenitsyn powerfully paints a shadowy picture of Siberian work camps during the Stalinist era. The main character, Shukov, is a powerful symbol of the courage of the human spirit in the midst of hopelessness and cruelty. This book is essential reading for anyone, especially those of us who have grown accustomed to living in a society that espouses liberty and freedom of expression. There are great lines that express only what a survivor of a prison camp could know. "Let your work warm you up, that was your only salvation" or "how can you expect a man who's warm to understand a man who's cold?" Solzhenitsyn also captures the consequences of a society's loss of God and the dehumanization that closely follows, "As for the Russians, they'd forgotten which hand to cross themselves with." The author holds the reader captive to the story, making him or her feel like a cell-mate with Ivan Denisovich. This is a master work on the psychology of survival. Reading about one day in a prisoner's life will forever change how you live each day of your life.
Rating:
Summary: A novel that sneaks up on you
Review: This is an interesting little book regarded by many as a classic. It gives a picture of a single day in the life of Ivan Denisovich Shukhov, a prisoner in a Russian labour camp under Stalin. As I read this book I found myself thinking, "Sure this is good. It's well written and interesting, but so far it's not powerful or impactful." However this is a book that kind of sneaks up on you and hits you with it's powerful impact right at the end. It's almost like you need to see the whole picture of the day to realise the profound theme which runs through all the little things that happen. You read through the whole day waiting for a climax which never comes. And then at the end of the day you are compelled to look back and realise the focus on the simple things - the joy to be had in work, the value of a crust of bread, a bowl of soup, a good pair of shoes, a favour done for a friend, and a favour received, the value in having one's freedom, even when living in a prison camp, the thankfulness of not becoming sick. It really makes one appreciative of what we have. "A day without a dark cloud. Almost a happy day."
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Summary: Ivan Denisovich is a symbol of bravery.
Review: I love this book. Ivan Denisovich is a symbol of bravery of the human spirit in despair. This story is necessary for all of us who used to the living in a society that supports freedom. The images of the Siberian camps in the Stalinist era are disturbing but impressive. There are many powerful outlines that express what a prisoner has to do in order to survive. Solzhenitsyn captures the society's dehumanization masterly. I was arrested in this story, making me feel as if I am Ivan Denisovich's cellmate. This is a masterwork on the psychology of continued existence. Reading about Ivan's life changed how I live each day. My uncle met Solzhenitsyn in CT. Great man. I wish I met him. He is one of my idols.
Rating:
Summary: Wouldn't really be worth your time, if it wasn't so short.
Review: I'd give this book 2 stars if it weren't for the historical and political significance it has accrued. Like a lot of "dissident" literature, Solzhenitsyn's work has become overrated. The narrative voice here changes abruptly from an erudite prose to "Shukhov" speaking colloquially, and back again. The political points made are as unsubtle as the characters themselves. And really, when you think about it, Ivan Denisovich Shukhov doesn't really have that bad of a day...just a dull one.
Rating:
Summary: Worth a read
Review: A novel relating a day in the life of a Siberian labor camp inmate. It lacks the gripping quality of books such as Journey Into the Whirlwind, but portrays well the details of an average prisoner's life and thoughts.
Rating:
Summary: A monumental work and foreshadowing of "Gulag"
Review: Solzhenitsyn's first published story was printed after Kruscheav's denunciation of Stalin occurred to the Communist Party faithful behind closed doors. During the short period of the Kruscheav era art, literature and criticism was allowed greater leeway. To many it became the story of suffering reflecting their experience's of thousands of survivor's- most of whom were released during the general amnesty's granted after Stalin's death. "One Day" follow's Ivan through literally one day of his life in a labor camp. Small issues become life threatening- an extra bowl of soup, a boot repair- all of it effects his life in one way or other. A rather simple tale, it contains within itself a world of suffering and hope. To read this is to understand the genesis of Solzhenitsyn's later "Gulag Archipelago" trilogy. An important and moving tale.
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