This book may disappoint some keen readers on spy novels, however I have found it contains all the elements to make a great book of it. In the first place, its layout in chapters told by the characters, adding the roles they take as the story evolves, but keeping their previous role there though crossed out, is really original. Secondly, the characters get to you. You feel their inner conflicts, their suffering. I found Irina's relationship with her mother endearing, as Olya's with Boris. The relationship among the typists, all women, and how they are presented opposed to the male characters... It's a superficial book on History: not much depth there. Great about Doctor Zhivago's genesis, and what it meant at the time. An interesting sketch on part of the writer's life, his motivation to write it and consequences faced. All in all, a very good book. (Commented by Marta Oyonarte)
