The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When it comes to a simple theme, it can't get much better than this. Death? Meet Ivan Ilych.

But what Tolstoy brings to the table is an outline of his life, his propriety, his career, and his failings as a husband and father (though he would never call it such) and the realization that he, perforce, must die.

Enter pain, existential horror, and bafflement.

Very Russian. Very universal. And extremely well-written.

And for the man who wrote War and Peace? SO SHORT! :)

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