Why people recommend it
Vasily Grossman's Life and Fate is a monumental historical novel depicting the sweeping horrors of the Eastern Front, the Holocaust, and the totalitarian pressures of the Soviet era. On The Ezra Klein Show, Morris Katz recommended the book for its stunning human portrayal of the Holocaust and its era. Douglas Murray frequently referenced the novel across multiple platforms, including the Lex Fridman Podcast, The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast, and Modern Wisdom, praising it as one of the twentieth century's greatest works and citing its profound observations on antisemitism, historical accusation, and psychological projection. Niall Ferguson also recommended the book on the Lex Fridman Podcast as essential reading for understanding the brutal realities of World War II's Eastern Front. Additionally, Dan Houser expressed his admiration for specific narrative passages within the novel during his appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast, underscoring the enduring literary and philosophical impact of Grossman's masterpiece upon contemporary thinkers and writers.
Who recommended it
- Douglas Murray Recommended
- Tyler Cowen Discussed
- Morris Katz Recommended
- Dan Houser Discussed
- Russ Roberts Discussed
- Niall Ferguson Recommended
Douglas Murray — 7 mentions
“There's this rule, as you know, that I go into in the book that I've mowled on a lot that I got from the great Soviet Jewish writer Vasley Gman, who I who appears intermittently throughout the book. Um, and Vasley Gman had this terrific dictim in the middle of life and fate where he says, "Tell me what you”
“So for instance uh the main accusation that the revolutionary Islamic government in Thran uses of the Jewish state of Israel is that it's a uh it's a colonial power... tell me what you accuse the Jews of and I'll tell you what you're guilty of.”
“But the real thing is, one of my great heroes Vasily Grossman says at the center of "Life and Fate," almost everything that is worth saying about antisemitism...”
“Vasily Grossman says at the center of "Life and Fate," almost everything that is worth saying about antisemitism”
“vastly grossman's life and fate so in the middle of life and fate which a persian friend of mine said was one of only two great novels of the 20th century”
“anyway i mention this because grossman in the middle of life has takes time out and does this like three-page explanation three-page description of anti-semitism”
“anyway grossman says in the middle of life and fate the – the – one of the extraordinary things about anti-semitism is that it does everything at the same time”
Tyler Cowen — 2 mentions
“much of that is a theme in vasel Grossman's life and fate right the paity of people denunciations the logic of decentralized control”
“fosy Grossman life and fate I'm doing a whole podcast on it that's a great great novel”
Morris Katz — 1 mention
“I'll do uh Life and Fate by Vaseli Gman. A really, I think, stunning kind of human portrayal um of the ramifications of the Holocaust in that entire era.”
Dan Houser — 1 mention
“- I love the bit in Life and Fate when you get...”
Russ Roberts — 1 mention
“our topic for today is vasil Grossman's Masterpiece life and fate”
Niall Ferguson — 1 mention
“if only if one reads grossman's life and fate”
Also mentioned in the same episodes
Other mentions (1: passing, ad reads, own books)
“- And you also mentioned that the three great World War II books are The Thin Red Line, Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman. And The End of the Affair, Graham Greene.”