as someone new to the stream of consciousness prose, it was difficult to get my feet underneath me. Highly recommend listening to A Poetry Channel's reading of it on YouTube. Truly made it come alive, and saved me from dreading the book. 

And it was interesting reading this so close after finishing Morphine by Bulgakov. I don't really know much about the experience of morphine addiction, so to get the perspective of someone becoming addicted and then to read this book which follows the one-sided lover of an old-timer junky, Bulgakov gives some context that maybe isn't explained here.