A man who read a copy of the Alexander Solzhenitsyn classic, 'Cancer Ward', has revealed how, whilst reading the book, he started to feel distinctly unwell.
The book, a classic amongst Russian literature, was written in 1966, and was censored by the Communist authorities, being severely critical of the authority and consequences of the rule of the by-then dead Joseph Stalin.
Moys Kenwood, 55, knew this from the blurb on the book's cover, but could not have imagined that, what lay between the covers would sap his strength so, and leave him feeling as if he, himself, were riddled with cancer.
'Cancer Ward' considers the moral responsibilities of different people implicated in the Great Purge, during which millions were killed, exiled, or sent to labor camps.
Kenwood said:
"I knew what to expect, but wasn't prepared for the effect it would have on me. As soon as I got past the first few pages, I began to feel 'a bit ropey'. It was an odd feeling, almost as if the words, and the way they were set down on the page were sucking me into the story. A terrifying experience."
This, though, is not what was happening. He just had a bit of 'flu.
