A Journey to the End of the Russian Empire (Penguin Great Journeys) (Paperback)

~ Anton Chekhov (Author) "At long last greetings from Siberian Man, dear Alexey Sergeyevich!..." (more)
Key Phrases: birch rods, Anton Chekhov, End of the Russian Empire, Northern Sakhalin (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Inspired by Penguin’s innovative Great Ideas series, our new Great Journeys series presents the most incredible tours, voyages, treks, expeditions, and travels ever written—from Isabella Bird’s exaltation in the dangers of grizzlies, rattlesnakes, and cowboys in the Rocky Mountains to Marco Polo’s mystified reports of a giant bird that eats elephants during his voyage along the coasts of India. Each beautifully packaged volume offers a way to see the world anew, to rediscover great civilizations and legends, vast deserts andunspoiled mountain ranges, unusual flora and strange new creatures, and much more.

About the Author

Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) was a physician, major Russian short story writer and playwright. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); US Ed edition (September 25, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0141032103
• ISBN-13: 978-0141032108
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 4.3 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #755,873 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Wild East, November 15, 2007

By	C. Ebeling "ctlpareader" (PA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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Anton Chekhov never sat down and wrote a discrete book titled A JOURNEY TO THE FAR END OF THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE, but he did take an eventful journey from Moscow to the island of Sakhalin, the eastern most reach of the empire, in 1890, which he recorded in letters to family and friends and in the report he was commissioned to write regarding the island settlement. Penguin editors have excerpted the letters to describe Chekhov's journey to his destination and draw on the report for what he found at his destination. Together, these parts create a satisfying, often astonishing travelogue and social statement.

Chekhov left Moscow in April and the letters begin with his arrival a month later in Tomsk, on the western side of Asiatic (Siberian) Russia. The letters are full of the humor, insights, wonder and conventions that are prized in the genre. Chekhov's narrative voice is addictive. It becomes clear that the route he follows, first by land and then by boat on the Amur, the river that borders China, that late 19th century Asiatic Russia had more than a little in common with the American Wild West of the same period. The Russians pushed eastward usurping land and natural resources from native tribes. Sakhalin, a long desolate island north of Japan, was taken for penal colonies and its coal deposits. In his report, Chekhov ehcoes Dickens and presages Orwell as he considers the condition of the prisoners, those who imprison them and the native Gilyaks. It is an incredible statement about humanity and inhumanity in an inhospitable place far from civilization.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Good, But Only the Beginning, September 12, 2008

By	James C. Lindsay - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The Penguin version of Anton Chekhov's journey to the tsarist penal colony on Sakhalin Island is very worthwhile and certainly would be recommended by myself. The only issue I have with it is that reading it makes you want to read the actual, full length work by Chekhov, not just these excerpts. You can tell its only the tip of the iceberg. Its a good beginning, but you'll want to read the whole thing.