Generally speaking, I think the book lacked depth, both in character development and description of the physical surroundings. For example, the dangerous condition of the coal mines is a predominant feature of the story because of its impact on Cilka’ nursing life; But, the author, relying mostly on one incident, provided only a superficial picture of mining environment. Regarding character development, we only know that Alexandr smokes cigarettes and has brown eyes. Given the central role he plays, that seems inadequate.
