Fifty-Two Stories

(1883-1898)

By: Anton Chekhov, Richard Pevear - translator, Larissa Volokhonsky - translator

Narrated by: Jim Frangione

From the celebrated, award-winning translators of Anna Karenina and The Brothers Karamazov: a lavish volume of stories by one of the most influential short fiction writers of all time.

Anton Chekhov left an indelible impact on every literary form in which he wrote, but none more so than short fiction. Now, renowned translators Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky give us their renderings of fifty-two Chekhov stories. These stories, which span the complete arc of his career, reveal the extraordinary variety and unexpectedness of his work, from the farcically comic to the darkly complex, showing that there is no one single type of “Chekhov story.” They are populated by a remarkable range of characters who come from all parts of Russia and all walks of life, including landowners, peasants, soldiers, farmers, teachers, students, hunters, shepherds, mistresses, wives, and children. Taken together, they demonstrate how Chekhov democratized the form.

Included in this volume are tales translated into English for the first time, including “Reading” and “An Educated Blockhead.” Early stories such as “Joy,” “Anguish,” and “A Little Joke” sit alongside such later works as “The Siren,” “Big Volodya and Little Volodya,” “In the Cart,” and “About Love.” In its range, in its narrative artistry, and in its perceptive probing of the human condition, this collection promises profound delight.

Critic reviews

“A first-rate collection. . . . Pevear and Volokhonsky select stories—happily, one for each week of the year—that express that devotion to realism, even if sometimes broadly satirically. . . . Encounters between young and old, rich and poor, country and city people mark these stories. . . . It’s a marvel of imagination. A welcome gathering of work, some not often anthologized, by an unrivaled master of the short story form.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

The authors ability to characterize the human behavior and thought is incredible

Listen to this book and expect to live well, work, well, and to play well.

Refreshing phrases

Bravo! This new collection of 52 newly translated Chekhov short stories surprises with refreshing phrases illuminating classic conflicts. It’s a tunnel into 19th Russia and contemporary lives.

Brilliant, Hilarious, Insightful.

The historical equivalent of a great comedian. He could have easily written for today's comics with little updating!

Lesser-known stories

Pevear and Volokhonsky have returned to Chekhov with this lovely anthology of less-commonly-anthologized stories. All of the usual Chekhov traits are in evidence: his plain style, his “ordinary” characters (imbued with extraordinary life), and his sometimes infuriating refusal to come to any narrative conclusion.

Jim Frangione does a capable job narrating the anthology. I've read some of the other reviews that didn't like his approach, and I have to say that I disagree. It's simply not true that everything is delivered at a high pitch of excitement, although his narration certainly has a heartier tone overall than many other narrators of Chekhov (Richard Armitage, for instance, in his recent selection).

The selection of stories is not a collection of Chekhov's Greatest Hits. You won't find here enduring classics like “The Black Monk,” “Ward #6,” “The Huntsman,” or “The Lady with the Little Dog.” In fact, Pevear and Volokhonsky published an earlier collection of 30 stories that does include some of these more famous ones. There is, surely by design, very little overlap between the two anthologies. Unfortunately the earlier one is not available in audio. If someone were enterprising enough to produce it (hey Audible: HINT), it would make a perfect companion piece to this new one.

Loved It

As there are so many stories, there is a great variety of tales here. Some overtly comedic, some more satiric, some quite dramatic. However, Chekhov incredibly sharp and tight writing style, where nothing is wasted, draws you into the stories. Even in the shortest stories, the characters and scenery is made vivid in your mind. There is a reason he is considered one of the greatest short story writers of all time.