The perfect introduction to the many talents of this iconic Russian writer: six short stories ranging from satire to tragedy
Dostevsky was a writer of unparalleld psychological intensity, capable of evoking startling absurdity and scorching social satire. In this collection of newly translated stories, scenes from the turbulent underbelly of St Petersburg are shot through with an acerbic, unforgiving humour, only to soften into moments of tragedy and unexpected tenderness.
An arrogant nobleman disgraces himself, and betrays his ideals, at an aide’s wedding. A struggling writer stumbles upon a cemetery where the dead talk to each other. A civil servant finds unexpected clarity from inside the belly of a crocodile. These stories, by turns both wickedly sharp and unexpectedly charming, illuminate Dostoevsky’s dazzling versatility as a writer.
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MAYA SLATER has published translations of Molière and other French writers, and co-translations with her husband Nicolas Pasternak Slater. She is a Senior Research Fellow of Queen Mary University of London.