Having bought this book mainly as something to read while travelling I found it to be not only a wonderful read but a gold mine of information.

The book is not simply a translation of Lermontov's "A hero of our time" But also includes a biography of Lermontov with corresponding time like to historical events and notable poets and writers of the time, a large and detailed introduction to the novel and also well written comprehensive notes to the text which included geographical place names, explanations of words both Russian and Turkish that are used throughout and some commentary on the text.

Not being a native speaker of Russian I am in no position to comment on the quality of the translation but in the introduction to the text the translator comments on some of the poor translations that have come before him and also that some translators have either only partially translated the text or have elaborated on the text believing that by doing so it would become more readable to the English speaking audience. Our translator however, seems to be of the opinion that he is faithful to the original Russian.

The novel itself consists of 5 stories centred around the north Caucuses where Russian troops were stationed while fighting the mountain Circassian and Chechen people in the 19th Century. The novel revolves around a young officer who on arriving meets up with a senior officer who having spent several years in the Caucuses has a fair few stories to tell and begins to narrate one of a young man who fell in love with a young Circassian girl and its tragic end. It seems clear that the senior man has a great deal of admiration for the junior officer and on meeting him again is disappointed at being given the cold shoulder. The younger officer does however, leave behind a collection of his journals that make up the last 3 stories of the novel.

Is is a wonderful short novel evoking the likes of Tolstoy and Pushkin in its tragedy. The main character is something of a reflection of Lermontov himself.

My edition is the everyman classic edition and on checking on amazon US it seems the paperback edition is the only one available in the US. I would however advise buying the everyman edition as it is a hardback and I believe not much more expensive than the paperback.

Lermontov is a sleeper by which I mean that he is lesser known and read outside Russia than other immortals. This novel was recommended to me by a Russian friend from Georgia and I was delighted to find a germinal work influenced greatly by Pushkin and Lord Byron. I read Hero of Our Time after Pushkin's Eugene Onegin. Both Puskin and Lermontov were mad for Byron's poetry as he had earned a certain rock star status. Pushkin was intrigued by blending poetry into the novel as a literary structure in Eugene Onegin. Lermontov's hero, Pechorin, and Pushkin's Onegin have much in common -- both are lovers named after Russian rivers. They both achieve the character type which became known as the "superfluous man" -- an intellect with charisma who finds his gifts are insufficient to influence his world in the way he has imagined. He becomes an outcast or misfit, in a sense, operating outside the conventions of morality and society -- disdainful of both -- with a clear sense of the futility and absurdity of his life. In Pechorin's case the young soldier chooses to influence his life but does so without hope. Perchorin's superfluous man emerges the underground man of Dostoyevski. This perspective is expressed multifariously in the next century in Camus' Stranger, the characters who in habit Beckett's tragicomedies and in the invisible man of Ralph Ellsion. Perhaps his experience in the Russian military created this sense of despair. His exile to the Caucasus Mountain between the Black and Caspian Seas ultimately had an uplifting affect upon Lermontov from the sheer beauty of the landscape which is memorably described in this novel. Like Pushkin, Lermontov was killed in a duel, in the latter's case at the tender age of 26. Chekhov was said to have remarked, "Still a boy and he wrote that." Lermontov is a must read to understand how the superfluous man personified in Lermontov has so influenced writers of diverse genres who followed him.

Lermontov is a sleeper by which I mean that he is lesser known and read outside Russia than other immortals. This novel was recommended to me by a Russian friend from Georgia and I was delighted to find a germinal work influenced greatly by Pushkin and Lord Byron. I read Hero of Our Time after Pushkin's Eugene Onegin. Both Puskin and Lermontov were mad for Byron's poetry as he had earned a certain rock star status. Pushkin was intrigued by blending poetry into the novel as a literary structure in Eugene Onegin. Lermontov's hero, Pechorin, and Pushkin's Onegin have much in common -- both are lovers named after Russian rivers. They both achieve the character type which became known as the "superfluous man" -- an intellect with charisma who finds his gifts are insufficient to influence his world in the way he has imagined. He becomes an outcast or misfit, in a sense, operating outside the conventions of morality and society -- disdainful of both -- with a clear sense of the futility and absurdity of his life. In Pechorin's case the young soldier chooses to influence his life but does so without hope. It is reminiscent of the underground man of Dostoyevski. This superfluous man reveals himself in the next century in Camus' Stranger, the characters who in habit Beckett's tragicomedies and in the invisible man of Ralph Ellsion. Perhaps his experience in the Russian military created this sense of despair. His exile to the Caucasus Mountain between the Black and Caspian Seas ultimately had an uplifting affect upon Lermontov from the sheer beauty of the landscape which is memorably described in this novel. Like Pushkin, Lermontov was killed in a duel, in the latter's case at the tender age of 26. Chekhov was said to have remarked, "Still a boy and he wrote that." Lermontov is a must read to understand how the superfluous man personified in Lermontov has so influenced writers of diverse genres who followed him.

Hero of Our Time is Lermontov's autobiographical story and the only complete novel he ever wrote. Lermontov built on what Pushikin started with Onegin (except that Pushkin wrote Onegin in verse) he took a step further and established the ground work for the physiological fiction form which inspired the golden age of nineteenth century Russian literature.

Lermontov exposes the vanity and cynicism as the overriding vice in Russia's nobility to only contrast it with an even darker picture of the state of the Russian serfdom and peasantry. Deeply reflective, Pechorin's search for a purpose is perhaps symbolic to Russia's search for its own identity and purpose.

Although Gregory Aleksandrovic Pechorin's life and deeds constitute the central theme of the story, on a larger historical scale, Hero of Our Time is also a thorough depiction of the Russian presence in, and their understanding of the Caucasus as well as the overall Russian colonialist attitudes of the time. The exotic depiction of Bella, the Chechens and the tribes of the region is somewhat Byronic but probably very real for the author.

A short note: I have read many reviews that claim this to be one of the most prophetic literary works, given that Lermontov foresees his own death! In reality Lermontov plans and publishes his death two years before it actually takes place i.e. there is nothing coincidental, so to speak, about the death of Pechorin and his own death two years after the novel was published in 1841.

An inspiring and dramatic novel that depicts the overwhelming power of the Russian soul as it was in the 19th century.

A note of caution to those considering purchasing the Hard Press edition of "A Hero in Our Time." I bought this edition based on the reviews that mentioned the edition as having been translated by Vlad & Dmitri Nabokov. So I was surprised when I received the Hard Press edition (soft cover, with grayish-green panels on the top and bottom, and grey and white panels in the center; no picture on the cover, only the text of the title/author). NOWHERE in the book does it state that it was translated by Nabokov; indeed, the book contains absolutely no translator info whatsoever, leaving the reader completely at sea in determining who translated it (despite Amazon's description that it contains a "Translator's Foreword"). Instead, the book appears more like a manuscript submitted for review, rather than a publication. There isn't even any Library of Congress or ISBN info anywhere in the book, nor is there a publication date (usually included on one of the opening pages). "Page 1" is completely blank (other than to say it is "Page 1"); "Page 2" consists of a table of contents, and page 3 launches straight into the author's text (despite page 2's table of contents indicating that the book starts with a "Foreward").

Every book, novel, or novella must be judged on its own independent of the biography and fame of the author or whether or not the writing is new. As we look back almost 200 years, the question is whether or not it is still an entertaining fairy tale or is it just historically interesting?

Taking off the rose coloured glasses, I humbly suggest that as a work of art on its own it is good. Yes, it is very entertaining, but not quite as good as Lermontov's contemporary Pushkin.

This is a novella about 157 pages long. It is not that exciting to read, but it was entertaining. I guess one must judge it in the context of the time.

He was a contemporary of Pushkin, and the story is a bit like Pushkin's "Tales of the Late Ivan Petrovich Belkin " but more elaborate and one continuous story, almost diary style. There is an excellent duel scene which must have inspired Chekhov's short story "The Duel." Overall, I thought it was good, but not quite as good as Pushkin. Pushkin has a certain flair or intangible and the present book rises to that level only in spots.

It has some entertaining moments, especially the duel scene and the opening chapter "Bela." But between the good scenes there is lots of filler writing. Clearly, this is great writing but it is thin on stories. For similar but better reading I would recommend "The Shooting party" by Chekhov. It is about the same length and is also a story within a story, or some of Chekhov's collected works such as "The Complete Short Novels" ISBN: 140003292X.

So, this is a worthwhile read and people interested in Russian literature must read it, but compared to what followed, or even Pushkin's "Tales of the Late Ivan Petrovich Belkin " ISBN: 0192839543, I thought it was good, perhaps even excellent, but a notch slightly below Pushkin. It reminds me of some of Hemigway's writings: outstanding prose but sometimes weak stories.