Russian essentials

While I have mostly read WW1/WW2 litterature, I've also picked up and read some russian litterature, which I am now a huge fan of.

I have/are going read the following;

Solzhenitsyn:

Cancer Ward
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
The Gulag Archipelago 1-3

Dostoevsky:

The Brothers Karamazov

Tolstoy:

War and Peace
Anna Karenina

Gogol:

Dead Souls

Now, the point of the list isn't to show you which books I've got. I want to know if I have missed any essential Russian litterature. I've heard that both Crime and Punishment and The House of the Dead by Dostoevsky are very good books, but I'm not sure if I wanna read Crime & Punishment. After reading some reviews it seems like it isn't "my type of book". Not sure about the The Red Wheel series by Solzhenitsyn either.

So, if anyone could tell me if I have missed something great, russian work, something that you would recommend, I'd really appreciate it if you let me know.

Thanks

What is it about Crime and Punishment that you don't think you'll like? I liked that book so much better than Brothers Karamozov. Ivan Turgenev's Father and Sons is, I think, a very important book. His books are much more consise than the great Russian epics of Tolstoy or Dostoevsky but they are no less profound in their way. Also...consider delving into some of the short stories of Tolstoy or Dostoevsky, they wrote some absolutely incredible short stores...and don't forget about Pushkin. Eugene Onegin is a good one to read.

As for Soviet Lit, I would add Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov and Quiet Flows the Don my Mikhail Sholokhov. And it would probably be good to read Dr. Zhivago by Boris Pasternak.

Thanks., I might pick up Crime and Punishment after all then. Everyman's Library has publised a translation by Pevear and Volokhonsky, and that isn't exactly a bad sign. Unfortunately, I haven't read The Brothers Karamazov yet.

Oh, you haven't read it yet...I'm sorry, I didn't catch that. :blush: I really struggled with Brothers Karamazov, of all the Dostoevsky I've read, and I've read a good amount, it was the book I liked the least but the majority of Dostoevsky fans consider it his greatest novel so, what do I know? :p

Dostoievsky - Crime and Punishment
Turgeniev - Fathers and Sons
Turgeniev - Clara Millitch
Sholokov - Quiet Flows the Don
Tolstoi - Resurrection
Gontcharov - Oblomov
Pushkin - The Queen of Spades
Pushkin - Eugene Onegin
Lermontov - A Hero of our Time (Haven't read this one yet myself)
Chekov - Short Stories
Bulgakov - Master and Margarita
Nabokov - The Defence
Gorky - My Childhood
Gorky - Mother (Haven't read this one either though)

"Dr. Zhivago by Boris Pasternak."

How is this one? I have it but haven't come around to reading it yet.

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Originally Posted by Etienne

"Dr. Zhivago by Boris Pasternak."

How is this one? I have it but haven't come around to reading it yet.

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I loved it! I had it in my head that it was this great epic love story...probably because of the pictures from the movie and I was kind of put off by that but I was wonderfully surprised to find that while there certainly is a love story, it's a great historical accounting of the Russian Civil War that followed the Revolution. It's sometimes hard to keep all the political groups and alliances clear...which at times, I think is part of the point but I highly recommend this to anyone who is interested in Russian literature or Russian history.

Lermontov's Hero of Our Time didn't do a whole lot for me. It was a fine book, a fairly easy read but it just didn't leave much of an impression one way or another. I think I had really high expectations of it because it's hailed as this masterpiece, a huge milestone in Russian history and I just found it to be merely another book.

The only books I haven't read on your list is Clara Millitch by Turgenev, although I've read several of his books, just not that one, and Nabokov's The Defence. Nabokov is an author I haven't read a great deal of. I've read Lolita but that's it.

Anyone of you read Kolyma Tales by Varlam Shalamov? It's an account in a way similar to One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, describing life in Gulag. Solzhenitsyn even asked Shalamov if he wanted to contribute with The Gulag Archipelago, but Shalamov felt - "too ill and tired after the hardship of his time in Gulag" - from John Bayley's introduction for One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich .

Chekhov's Short Stories are essential. Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev is also an excellent, albeit short, book. You could also try out The Idiot by Dostoevsky.

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Originally Posted by Nico87

Anyone of you read Kolyma Tales by Varlam Shalamov? It's an account in a way similar to One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, describing life in Gulag. Solzhenitsyn even asked Shalamov if he wanted to contribute with The Gulag Archipelago, but Shalamov felt - "too ill and tired after the hardship of his time in Gulag" - from John Bayley's introduction for One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich .

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I haven't read it but it sounds interesting. I'll have to add it to my amazon list. :thumbs_up

Sounds interesting, indeed. John Bailey says in his introduction for One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich that the stories from The Kolyma Tales are much more brutal than the stories in One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. The stories are both from personal experiences and fictional accounts of stories the author of The Kolyma Tales had heard from other ex-prisoners.

You can read more about the book here;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kolyma_Tales

Quote: "The Kolyma Tales is considered to be one of the great Russian collections of short stories of the twentieth century"

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Originally Posted by Nico87

Sounds interesting, indeed. John Bailey says in his introduction for One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich that the stories from The Kolyma Tales are much more brutal than the stories in One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. The stories are both from personal experiences and fictional accounts of stories the author of The Kolyma Tales had heard from other ex-prisoners.

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One Day in the Life is a pretty tame book. It's amazing how depressing it is and how clear a picture it draws of life in the gulags without being overly detailed or graphic. Gulag Archigelago, however, is a much more brutal look at the gulags. One of the things I found interesting in the review of The Kolyma Tales I read is that they talk about how emotionless he tells these tales, that the more brutal the act, the more objective the writing becomes and that intrigues me because Solzhenitsyn was so emotional in his writing. It would be fascinating to compare and contrast their approaches.

Well said, Idril. I've just finished One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich and you are right about what you're saying about it. The Kolyma Tales is on the top of my to-buy list now, after I just placed an order on Crime and Punishment. Seems kind of hard to find a decent hardcover edition of the book, though.

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Originally Posted by Dori

Chekhov's Short Stories are essential.

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Would this be the one I'm looking for in this case?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Nov...3023265&sr=8-4

It contains The Steppe, The Duel, The Story of an Unknown Man, Three Years, and In My Life.

I'm going to the army/Afghanistan in the beginning of January, so I need alot of reading material!

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Originally Posted by Nico87

Would this be the one I'm looking for in this case?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Nov...3023265&sr=8-4

It contains The Steppe, The Duel, The Story of an Unknown Man, Three Years, and In My Life.

I'm going to the army/Afghanistan in the beginning of January, so I need alot of reading material!

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I haven't read The Steppe or The Duel, however I think you should take this one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Essential-Ta...3023265&sr=8-4

His three plays are also known as classics of russian litterature, but I haven't read them.

I haven't been on this forum for a while.

I've read "The Kolyma Tales" and like them much better than anything Solzhenitsyn ever written (doesn't say much because I like only "One day of Ivan Denisovich" anyway. I especially recommend "The last battle of major Pugachov".
From Dostoevsly I would start from "Idiot" because it is probably easiest to read among his great novels, then continue with "Crime and Punishment", "The Possesed (Devils)" and finish "Brothers Karamazov". While the latter can be a bit difficult at times it is very rewarding and has some of the best passages I've ever read.

I agree with most of the books proposed above except probably Gorky's "Mother"- it is trul one of the worst clasics I've ever read.

From Bulgakov not only "Master and Margarita" but "Heart of a Dog" and "White Guard" are extremely interesting and are among my favorites.

Other 20th century not mentioned interesting Russian authors are:

Vassily Grossman
Andrei Platonov
Vladimir Voynovich
Victor Pelevin
Anatoly Rybakov
Anatoly Pristavkin
Chingiz Aytmatov
Fazil' Iskander
Strugatsky brothers

Don't forget Tolstoy's short novels. In many respects they are his finest works:
The Death of Ivan Illych
Master and Man

Although I haven't read it, Idril has recommended, The Kreutzer Sonata.

Nabokov claimed that Andre Bely's novel Petersburg was one of the greatest novels of the 20th century, and it indeed a remarkable Joyce-esque novel, which, unfortuneatly suffers greatly in translation.

Another work not mentioned yet is Gogol's short story "The Overcoat", as Dostoevskii said, "We all came out of Gogol's Overcoat." Other notable novelists from the golden period of Russian literature are Goncharov (Oblomov), Leskov, Saltykov (The Golovlyov Family).

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Originally Posted by Boris239

I haven't been on this forum for a while.

I've read "The Kolyma Tales" and like them much better than anything Solzhenitsyn ever written .

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Which translation and edition did you read? I'm still looking for a hardcover edition!

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Originally Posted by Boris239

Vassily Grossman

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I've read A Writer at War: Vasily Grossman with the Red Army 1941-1945. Although very different from any other books of war I've read, I found it very engaging and interesting. It's remarkable to read what everything looked like in a journalists eyes, and all the small details he picked up along the way.

I've always wanted to read Life & Fate.

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Originally Posted by Nico87

Which translation and edition did you read? I'm still looking for a hardcover edition!

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I'm originally from Russia so I read it in original

Anyone read Nabokov? I'm currently looking at Lolita and Pnin.

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Originally Posted by Nico87

Would this be the one I'm looking for in this case?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Nov...3023265&sr=8-4

It contains The Steppe, The Duel, The Story of an Unknown Man, Three Years, and In My Life.

I'm going to the army/Afghanistan in the beginning of January, so I need alot of reading material!

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This is what I have: Selected Stories (Signet Classics).

It's probably one of the cheapest versions out there.

Hm, yes, but I'm not a huge fan of paperbacks.

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Originally Posted by Nico87

Anyone read Nabokov? I'm currently looking at Lolita and Pnin.

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There is a thread dedicated to Lolita and Nabokov here.

from Nabokov Russian books I would recommend "the Luzhin Defense" and "The Gift"

Thanks to you both!

I found an interesting book on abebooks - http://www.abebooks.co.uk/servlet/Bo...x%3D60%26y%3D6
has anyone read any of these short stories? I like short stories alot, but haven't read any shorties from any of these authors.

Nevermind, link doesn't work because I already purchased it, but it contains the following;

Authors: A.S. Pushkin, N.V. Gogol, I.S. Turgenev, F.M. Dostoyevsky, L.N. Tolstoy, M.T. Saltykov, V.G. Korlolenko, V.M. Garshin, A.P. Chekov, F. Sologub, I.N. Potapenko, S.T. Semyonov, M. Gorky, M.P. Artybashev, A.I. Kuprin, L.N. Andreyev

Stories: The Queen of Spades, The Cloak, The Christmas Tree and the Wedding, God Seeks the Truth but Waits, The Darling, The Bet, Vanka, One Autumn Night, The Red Laugh, The Gentleman from San Francisco, Lazarus. There's bound to be more stories as the list shows more authors than stories.

I don't know which stories belong to which authors.

I already read some short stories by Garshin and Korolenko, and they were VERY good.

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Originally Posted by Nico87

I found an interesting book on abebooks - http://www.abebooks.co.uk/servlet/Bo...x%3D60%26y%3D6
has anyone read any of these short stories? I like short stories alot, but haven't read any shorties from any of these authors.

Nevermind, link doesn't work because I already purchased it, but it contains the following;

Authors: A.S. Pushkin, N.V. Gogol, I.S. Turgenev, F.M. Dostoyevsky, L.N. Tolstoy, M.T. Saltykov, V.G. Korlolenko, V.M. Garshin, A.P. Chekov, F. Sologub, I.N. Potapenko, S.T. Semyonov, M. Gorky, M.P. Artybashev, A.I. Kuprin, L.N. Andreyev

Stories: The Queen of Spades, The Cloak, The Christmas Tree and the Wedding, God Seeks the Truth but Waits, The Darling, The Bet, Vanka, One Autumn Night, The Red Laugh, The Gentleman from San Francisco, Lazarus. There's bound to be more stories as the list shows more authors than stories.

I don't know which stories belong to which authors.

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I've read a few of those, The Queen of Spades, that's Pushkin; The Cloak...Gogol has a short story called The Overcoat, I'm wondering if that might be the same one and God Seeks The Truth But Waits is Tolstoy and a great short story. I've read several of Dostoevsky's short stories but I don't recongnize any of the titles, unless there are different translations of the names and I've read a handful of Chekhov stories as well but I don't see any of those listed either. All in all, I think you have a really good collection there. A great place to start.

The Darling and The Bet is Chekhov. The Christmas Tree and the Wedding is Dostoevsky.

I'm in the midst of "Demons" by Dostoevsky right now, and enjoying it immensely. I think I said somewhere before that my knowledge of Russian literature is extremely lacking (basically, only Tolstoy's "Ressurection" and some of Solzhenitsyn's speeches and short stories), however reading this thread I see that no one has even mentioned Isaac Babel yet. I would definately reccomend tracking down his complete works and immersing yourself in them (especially if you've just come from being more or less punished by Dostoevsky's novels).

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Originally Posted by Idril

I've read a few of those, The Queen of Spades,

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Thanks for your, as usual, great insight. Perhaps one of Chekov's stories are amongst the stories the seller didn't have enough space to fit in.

"The Gentleman from San Francisco" is Bunin's. Very beautiful language, very gloomy.

I'm not sure about some of the others because if I read them then it was probably in Russian. But Andreev and Kuprin short stories should be really good. Gorky's early stories are also fun to read.

For short 20 century stories I also like Zoschenko. From something more recent- I am a big fan of Sergei Dovlatov.

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Originally Posted by Nico87

I found an interesting book on abebooks - http://www.abebooks.co.uk/servlet/Bo...x%3D60%26y%3D6
has anyone read any of these short stories? I like short stories alot, but haven't read any shorties from any of these authors.

Nevermind, link doesn't work because I already purchased it, but it contains the following;

Authors: A.S. Pushkin, N.V. Gogol, I.S. Turgenev, F.M. Dostoyevsky, L.N. Tolstoy, M.T. Saltykov, V.G. Korlolenko, V.M. Garshin, A.P. Chekov, F. Sologub, I.N. Potapenko, S.T. Semyonov, M. Gorky, M.P. Artybashev, A.I. Kuprin, L.N. Andreyev

Stories: The Queen of Spades, The Cloak, The Christmas Tree and the Wedding, God Seeks the Truth but Waits, The Darling, The Bet, Vanka, One Autumn Night, The Red Laugh, The Gentleman from San Francisco, Lazarus. There's bound to be more stories as the list shows more authors than stories.

I don't know which stories belong to which authors.

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Thanks for your advices, Boris! Great to have a real russian on this forum!

Will check them two authours out.

Actually, I might be wrong, but I think perhaps that I've read The Compromise. Will see if I can find the book if I ever bought it.

Found a book that contains 23 stories by Chekov;

A Day in the Country
Old Age
Kashtanka
Enemies
On the Way
Vanka
La Cigale
Grief
An Inadvertance
The Black Monk
The Kiss
In Exile
A Work of Art
Dreams
A Woman's Kingdom
The Doctor
A Trifling Occurence
The Hollow
After the Theater
The Runaway
Vierochka
The Steppe
Rothschild's Fiddle

Could this be an alternative to http://www.amazon.co.uk/Essential-Ta...3185532&sr=8-1 ?

I also found a book that contains 40(!) stories.

Some of these are stories for kids but Rothschild's Fiddle is a true masterpiece

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Originally Posted by Nico87

Stories: The Queen of Spades, The Cloak, The Christmas Tree and the Wedding, God Seeks the Truth but Waits, The Darling, The Bet, Vanka, One Autumn Night, The Red Laugh, The Gentleman from San Francisco, Lazarus. There's bound to be more stories as the list shows more authors than stories.

I don't know which stories belong to which authors.

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The Cloak is Gogol(Idril is right), Vanka is probably Uncle Vanya by Chekhov.

Argh, ok, nothing for me then.

If anyone owns The Essential Tales of Chekhov, could you list the stories in this book? I plan to buy the other book I posted above aswell, but not if both books has too many of the same stories.

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Originally Posted by bazarov

The Cloak is Gogol(Idril is right), Vanka is probably Uncle Vanya by Chekhov.

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Hi, Baz. Looks like both Russia and Croatia will go through. "Van'ka" is a short story for kids by Chekhov- nothing in common with "Uncle Vanya" (except the author)

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Originally Posted by Boris239

Hi, Baz. Looks like both Russia and Croatia will go through. "Van'ka" is a short story for kids by Chekhov- nothing in common with "Uncle Vanya" (except the author)

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Boris, it's been a while...I was so so happy when Pavlyuchenko scored his second goal. I have no doubt we will take at least one point in Skopje and then go on tourist visit to Wembley. Of course, Russia will win in Tel Aviv and will party!

bazarov, the quote in your signature, which book is that taken from? It sounds so familiar!

Notes from Underground.