Vladimir Korolenko

الموسيقي الأعمى

มิ่งมิตรดุริยกร

Maxim Gorky

Leonidas Andreyeff

"HOURS SPENT IN PRISON." By Gorky, Andreyeff, and Korolenko. This title is the heading of a book, which gives a few biographical words about the poor and sad existence of three authors who represent the literary talent of contemporary Russia. It is a curious fact that under the stringent censorship of Nicholas I there were great writers, like Pushkin, Gogol, Lermontoff, etc., and that most of them belonged to the higher strata of society. At present the Russian Press itself is notorious for its license, but talented authors are scarce, and mostly of low origin, who, on principle, describe the slums. Gorky's "Song about a Hawk" is an allegory, and the "Destroyed Dam" is a poetical picture of the raging sea, probably suggesting a surging crowd overpowering tyranny. "Pogrom" is a ghastly representation of how the Russian mob slaughtered and robbed Jews. No reasons are, however, given why they did it. Cossacks and policemen come on the scene to save the situation. Now the mob began to climb the wall, and so invaded the courtyards. The Cossacks surrounded the flying crowd. A few moments ago these men had been mercilessly tormenting and killing wretched men, human beings like themselves. In a few seconds the same murderers had become nothing more than frightened, trembling cowards, who were trying to escape over any wall that was possible... If true, this suggests that the Jews are passive, the Russian mob ferocious and brutal, while the authorities represented by Cossacks and police are supine. Andreyeff's "An Abyss" is offensive and revolting, even for this decadent author; while the substance of "Marseillaise " is a description of a silly, feeble boy, who is unjustly imprisoned, but is supposed to become a hero because, when dying, he asks the other prisoners, who used to deride him, to sing the "Marseillaise" over him instead of reading a prayer for his burial service. Last, but not least, we have Vladimir Korolenko's "Strange Character" (from Personal Remembrances), a touching story of a soldier who had to watch a lady, evidently persecuted and exiled for being a sectarian. The story is remarkable for its simplicity and hidden meaning. Korolenko is very popular among the peasant class in Russia, and his books are more read in village circulating libraries (where such landmarks of civilization exist) than the works of other authors, whose eminent names are better known in Western Europe. - "Proceedings by Anglo-Russian Literary Society" [1908]

Hours Spent in Prison

Anton Chekhov

Teffi

Mikhail Zoshchenko

Klaudia Lukashevich

Leo Tolstoy

Fyodor Dostoevsky

A collection of short Christmas stories by some of Russia’s greatest nineteenth and twentieth century authors—several appearing in English for the first time. Running the gamut from sweet and reverent to twisted and uproarious, this collection offers a holiday feast of Russian fiction. Dostoevsky brings stories of poverty and tragedy; Tolstoy inspires with his fable-like tales; Chekhov’s unmatchable skills are on full display in his story of a female factory owner and her wretched workers; Klaudia Lukashevitch delights with a sweet and surprising tale of a childhood in White Russia; and Mikhail Zoshchenko recounts madcap anecdotes of Christmas trees and Christmas thieves in the Soviet Era—a time when it was illegal to celebrate the holiday in Russia. There is no shortage of imagination, wit, or vodka on display in this collection that proves, with its wonderful variety and remarkable human touch, that nobody does Christmas like the Russians.

The Greatest Russian Holiday Stories of All Time

A Very Russian Christmas

Vladimir Korolenko

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