The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
This novel is a complex narrative that weaves together three distinct yet intertwined stories. The first story is set in 1930s Moscow and follows the devil and his entourage as they wreak havoc on the city's literary elite. The second story is a historical narrative about Pontius Pilate and his role in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The third story is a love story between the titular Master, a writer who has been driven to madness by the criticism of his work, and his devoted lover, Margarita. The novel is a satirical critique of Soviet society, particularly the literary establishment, and its treatment of artists. It also explores themes of love, sacrifice, and the nature of good and evil.
The 39th greatest book of all time
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This book is on the following lists:
- 1st on 100 Best Novels, in Translation, Since 1900 (CounterPunch)
- 1st on Kanon na koniec wieku (Canon at the end of the century) (Rzeczpospolita (newspaper))
- 6th on Big Read (Bulgarian) (Bulgaria)
- 8th on The 25 Favorite Books of 100 Francophone Writers (Telerama)
- 10th on Big Read (Hungarian) (Hungaria)
- 13th on El Pais Favorite Books of 100 Spanish Authors (El Pais)
- 16th on Harvard Book Store Staff's Favorite 100 Books (Harvard Book Store)
- 25th on 30 Books Every Adult Should Read Before They Die (The British Museums, Libraries, and Archives Society)
- 28th on The Main Works of Russian literature (Polka Academy)
- 47th on In Which These Are the 100 Greatest Novels (ThisRecording.com)
- 57th on The 500 best books of all time from Culture Café users (Culture Café)
- 63rd on Waterstone's Books of the Century (LibraryThing)
- 77th on The Top 10: The Greatest Books of All Time (The Top 10 (Book))
- 80th on The 100 Best Novels of the 20th Century (Folha de São Paulo)
- 92nd on Big Read (German) (Germany)
- 94th on Le Monde's 100 Books of the Century (Le Monde)
- 110th on The Novel 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Novels of All Time (The Novel 100)
- 130th on The Big Read (BBC)
- 207th on Our Users' Favorite Books of All Time (The Greatest Books Users)
- 50 Best Cult Books (Telegraph)
- The Books You've Always Meant to Read (Waterstones)
- 100 Books to Read from Eastern Europe and Central Asia (New East Digital Archive)
- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (The Book)
- The Best Classics (The Times)
- Harold Bloom's The Western Canon (The Western Canon (Book) by Harold Bloom)
- The Bigger Read List (English PEN)
- A Hundred Novels to Change Your Life (The Daily Mail)
- The Guardian's Essential Library (The Guardian)
- The Graphic Canon (Book)
- Daily Telegraph's 100 Books of the Century, 1900-1999 (Daily Telegraph)
- Världsbiblioteket (The World Library) (Tidningen Boken)
- 100 Main Fantasy and Science-Fiction Books (www.mirf.ru (Russian))
- The 50 Books Everyone Needs to Read, 1963-2013 (Flavor Wire)