The reviewer found Gogol's writing engaging, despite some offensive content and shallow stories. They appreciated his ability to highlight societal ills and enjoyed the audiobook narration.
The reviewer initially planned to read only one of Gogol's collections but found his writing so engaging that they continued. They appreciated his ability to highlight societal ills and enjoyed the audiobook narration. However, they noted that some stories were shallow and offensive, but these are common issues with classic literature. The reviewer particularly enjoyed stories like 'The Carriage' and 'St. John's Eve' for their charm and spookiness, respectively. They also appreciated the lighter tone of 'Christmas Eve' and the humorous 'Ivan Fyodorovich Shponka and His Aunt', despite its unfinished state.
Quick quotes
Perhaps the greatest compliment I can give Gogol is that I even read this collection.
Gogol’s Russia and Ukraine is hounded by a paralysing inhuman bureaucracy that tempts people to do foolish things for foolish ends, and dooms anyone unlucky enough to not have been born lucky.
I quite enjoyed it, even as it feels like an anomaly in Gogol’s otherwise much more pessimistic and misanthropic writing.