The Gambler / Bobok / A Nasty Story (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Author), Jesse Coulson (Translator, Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 30, 1966

The stories in this volume demonstrate Dostoyevsky's genius for fusing caricature, irony and the grotesque to create a powerful dark humour. "The Gambler" is a breathtaking portrayal of an intense and futile obsession. Based on Dostoyevsky's own experience of financial desperation and the compulsive desire to win money, it focuses on the characters that take their places at the gaming tables of 'Roulettenburg': the outspoken, aristocratic 'Grandmamma', the mercenary Mademoiselle Blanche, the cool, mysterious Polina and Alex, the author's self-portrait; a man gripped by exhilaration and hopelessness. "Bobok" is a blackly comic satire in which a desolate writer becomes drawn into the conversations of the dead, and "A Nasty Story" is a humorous look at the disparity between a man's exaggerated ideal of himself and the sad reality.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Russian

About the Author

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky was born in Moscow in 1821, the 2nd of 7 children. From 1849 to 1854 he lived in a convict prison, and in later years his passion for gambling led him deeply into debt. In 1880 he delivered his famous address at theunveiling of Pushkin's memorial in Moscow; he died six months later in 1881. Jessie Coulson has also translated Notes from Undergound for the Penguin Classics.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (October 30, 1966)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140441794
• ISBN-13: 978-0140441796
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,319,570 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Some of Dostoevsky's Finest, February 16, 2000

By 

la - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gambler / Bobok / A Nasty Story (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

Those who would read Dostoevsky but, are intimidated by the sheer magnitude of his epics, should read this collection of three great shorter works. Bobok is strikingly amusing and clever. The Gambler brilliantly depicts the all too real dynamics of a toxic relationship. My favorite, A Nasty Story, is such an hilarious and witty story. It's almost painful to read as one is compelled to sympathize with the character's best intentions gone wrong. All marvelous works from the brilliant mind of Dostoevsky.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent short stories by the classic Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky, August 5, 2009

By 

C. M Mills "Michael Mills" (Knoxville Tennessee) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gambler / Bobok / A Nasty Story (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

Mention Russian Literature and the names Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) fall trippingly off the tongue. As one who has immersed himself in the dark, verbose and philosophical novels of Dostoyevsky it was with joy I turned to three shorter works contained in this Penguin Classics Editon.
The Gambler is set in the mythical German spa "Rouletteberg" where a group of travelers play the gaming tables, seek romance and quest for fortune. The tale is told by Alexi a character based on Dostoyevsky who had a gambling obsession. Alexi is in love with the mecurial beauty Polina who will leave him for the arms and wealth of an English nobleman. The General is an old Russian roue who is courted by the mercenary French woman Blanche. The best character in the 120 page novella is Grandmama a rich Russian woman whose relatives fight over the rights to be included in her will. Grandmama loses a fortune at the gaming tables. She is plain, outspoken and wry in her comments on her ne'er do well family
members. This is a cautionary tale of the evils of gambling whose
temptations the author knew all to well.
Dostoyevsky wrote this story under pressure from his publisher to produce a sellable story. It was during its hurried writing that he obtained the services of a secretary who would become his second
wife.
Bobok is a short story about the ability of deceased persons to speak to one another from their graves! This is a macabre, witty story in which the dead comment on the foibles of the living.
A Nasty Story tells the tale of a bumptious official who by accident attends the wedding party of a clerk in his office. The official drinks too much collapsing in a drunken stupor. He spends the night in the bed which had been reserved for the newlyweds. The story is a smart smack in the face at Tsarist bureaucrats.
These stories are a good introduction to the genius who is Dostoevsky. Recommended!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Great stories but get a different translation, April 7, 2008

By 

D. B. Chamberlain - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gambler / Bobok / A Nasty Story (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

I love Dostoyevsky and personally think these stories are some of his best, but after reading this version (as well as a public domain version of Crime and Punishment), realized there are better translations than the ones I had read. I have found that Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky seem to be the best. For the stories included in this book, they have either "The Double and The Gambler" or "The Eternal Husband and Other Stories".

One particularly annoying point is that this version does not have footnote translations for the French phrases in the Gambler.