Tag: leo tolstoy

American Fiction, Book Review, California, Classic, English Literature, Fiction, Short Story

Tournament of Short Stories: Bret Harte vs. D.H. Lawrence and Leo Tolstoy

This little tournament has force me to read the volume of Bret Harte’s Gold Rush era short fiction C.J. and I bought a few years back while visiting Nevada City, California.  I’ve enjoyed them.  They are old-fashioned stories.  Mr. Harte does have fine characters but the plot is really where it’s at with his work.  I’ve enjoyed them all and I enjoyed the two I … Continue reading Tournament of Short Stories: Bret Harte vs. D.H. Lawrence and Leo Tolstoy

james b chester2 Comments
Book Review, Classic, Fiction, Novella, Russian Literature

The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy

I see now that I was wrong about Leo Tolstoy lacking a sense of humor.  At Amatuer Reader’s suggestion I took another look at the opening chapter of The Death of Ivan Ilych–it’s pretty funny.  Funny in the same, slightly off-kilter, dark way that Gogol and Dostoevsky are funny. The Death of Ivan Ilych opens with the departed character’s friends arriving to provide comfort to his widow. … Continue reading The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy

james b chester3 Comments
Book Review, Classic, Fiction, Novella, Russian Literature, Translation

The Devil by Leo Tolstoy

If you’re nervous about Tolstoy’s longer works, and you’re not alone, why not start with a novella. Tolstoy’s The Devil, translated by Louise and Aylmer Maude,  clocks in at exactly 100 pages. The Devil  tells the story of an aristocratic landowner who is slowly overcome with sexual desire for one of his peasants, a story that may be based on events in the author’s life, according to the … Continue reading The Devil by Leo Tolstoy

james b chester3 Comments