11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Delightful tidbits from the Master, July 27, 2000
This review is from: The Comic Stories (Paperback)
Chekhov wrote all of these stories under a pseudonym, some of them while he was still in medical school. Until his death, he denied being their author; perhaps he did not want to spoil his image with these bits of humor, or perhaps he did not want to spoil these stories' frivolity by attaching a name like Chekhov to them. Unlike the dark, brooding impression of Chekhov one may get from some of his plays, these stories are lively, lighthearted and often hilarious. All are short -- some as short as just a page or two -- but all will have clever endings, even for readers not familiar with Chekhov or with his specific Russian brand of humor. Many of the stories are not meant to be laugh-out-loud funny, but are comic in the more classical sense, bringing forth clever observations and juxtapositions in a seemingly familiar world. These are highly recommended either as a supplement to Chekhov's better known works, or as an easy introduction to his writings.
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