First time reading Dostoevsky and I very much appreciate the lengths you are going to facilitate this read through. I am excited that my introduction to this author will be accompanied with articles and community commentary to get the richest experience possible.
I have the Bicentennial edition of the P&V translation which I am combining with its audiobook.
The schedule is printed, the bookmark is set, the end table is dusted and the coaster awaits its cup. I am ready.
Hello Dana, best wishes for the Holidays and the new year. I have Brothers karamazov in English and Spanish. I bought Avsey's translation for this slow read. My Spanish book is translated by J. Santos Hervás, I will use that as well. I have read Crime and Punishment, White Nights, and The Idiot. I saw that there is a biography in English of Dostoyevsky's wife, which looks like it will be interesting (The Gambler Wife), do you know it?) I would like to read that at some point.
I'm glad you're staying with us in the club, Paul.
Though I haven't read this particular Kaufman book yet, I'm familiar with it. He drew from multiple sources, including two fascinating memoirs by Dostoevsky's wife Anna, which I have read. Kaufman has apparently transformed these materials into a more literary narrative. I've seen many positive reviews of "The Gambler's Wife" and intend to read it myself.
I'm planning this year to read most of the works of Dostoevsky inspired by the reddit's a year of reading subs. I'm planning to read TBk with your club because it's long and I don't want to rush reading it.
That being said I'm reading David McDuff's translation. Excited to read this tome with you!
Welcome. Have you seen those posts on the Dostoevsky subreddit? I recently saw a post there about someone who had read all of Dostoevsky and didn't know what to do with themselves.
I'm really looking forward to this! I'm reading the P&V translation, and so far, I've read The Brothers Karamazov, The Idiot, and Crime and Punishment. I'm excited to reread TBK—there’s so much depth, and I feel like I missed a lot the first time around!
This sounds wonderful! Thank you. I've read Crime and Punishment, Notes from Underground, The Idiot, Demons and a short story called 'Bobok'. This book club comes at a good time since I was planning on reading TBK next. After finishing C&P I immediately considered Dostoevsky my favourite author. There is no artist of the modern era who understands and addresses the spiritual condition of our time better than he does, in my opinion. This judgment was only confirmed by reading his other novels. For TBK, I will be reading the Norton Critical Edition which is a revision of Garnett's translation. This should avoid the well-known issues you described while retaining her prose which I quite like.
It's great to see another Dostoevsky enthusiast in the club. I think you won't be disappointed by the novel. I have mixed feelings about Garnett - on one hand, I'm grateful to her as she did an enormous amount of work in her time, translating all of Dostoevsky, and it's particularly thanks to her that he became so well-known in the English-speaking world. But precisely because of this, she didn't spend much time on each translation, and now there are translations that are closer to Dostoevsky's style. But the most important thing is always to enjoy what you're reading - if you like Garnett's writing style, then she's the translator for you.
I have the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation but may get another one as I didn't particularly like their translation of Crime and Punishment. I can't remember what one I read back in my uni days and no longer have that copy. Whichever one I read though, I'm looking forward to it immensely! Thank you for running this group!
As far as I found, The Brothers has far fewer translations compared to Crime and Punishment. MacDuff has been mentioned here several times, so I'm thinking of getting his translation for reference as well. Is he a good translator? I've settled on Avsey for now, but I haven't come across his translation of Crime and Punishment, so this is actually the only translation by him that I have.
Hi Dana, I have just subscribed to your reading group for "The Brothers Karamazov." I have read the Pevear & Volokhonsky translation before, but if you think the Ignat Avsey translation is different enough, then I'll be happy to buy it also.
I have read all of Dostovevsky's major novels and many of his short stories. In the last few years I started rereading most of the classics that I had read before; I find that I am only just beginning to understand and to really benefit from them. TBK is one of the novels that I think I need to reread really slowly and really closely to be able to appreciate fully. So glad that now I have a chance to read it together with other passionate readers. (I think you have to be a passionate reader to be willing to tackle a book like TBK.)
Looking forward to your guidance and our discussions!
The P&V translation is also highly regarded and often loved - it's a good translation too, but more academic rather than literary. If you already have it and enjoy reading it, then there's no need to spend money on another version - you should stick with reading that one.
But if there are parts of the translation you didn't like, or if you want to experience the book with a slightly different style and compare, then it could be an interesting experience. Ignat Avsey has done extensive work, and his version is more expressive, with the story flowing more smoothly. I'll also be primarily using his translation for chapter titles. It might be easier to follow.
I have just finished my first novel by Dostoevsky (Crime and Punishment) and I really want to read more so this Substack is perfect. I will be reading the translation in French by André Markowicz !
Welcome to the club, Anna! I hope this year will be interesting and exciting. I haven't read the French translation, but I know French, so it will be interesting to see how certain passages have been translated.
While not my favorite, it's a well-regarded translation used by many readers. Some consider it their preferred version. The translation's extensive footnotes and explanations make it particularly valuable for academic study.
Hello! I read several books from Dostoyevsky when I was in high school. I was very much into Russian classics then, I wish I could say I retained much of it. So I feel like I am starting anew.
I am slow reading the War & Peace by Tolstoy with Simon Haisell and I’ve decided to join yours too and make this my Russian Lit year.
I have ordered the Avsey’s translation. Excited for this adventure.
I'm delighted to see you in the club, Nuray! Simon's War and Peace club was one of a kind—I enjoyed participating there, even though I only joined occasionally. I hope our journey together will be exciting for everyone!
Hello! The P&V translation is the one I know, so sticking with that. I’ve read Dostoevsky’s big five once each, so this will be my second reading of TBK. I came to Dostoevsky through existentialism, and he remains my favorite existentialist. Joined a read Ulysses in 80 Days club on FB last summer, and was very successful, and TBK is one of my favorites, so excited for a slow read and a proper consideration.
After I graduated university and after a few years of work and floundering as a husband and father, I enrolled as a post-bac student at San Diego State. The history department a great class on Soviet film, where such as Potemkin, Alexander Nevsky, etc. But we also were assigned the literature of the early Soviet era: Babel was included as well "We" by Zamyatin and "Cement"(?). While an undergrad and community college transfer at UCLA, I contrived by own emphasis on Russian/Soviet studies. So it included history, political science (my misbegotten major), geography, and even one quarter of the Russian language. All of this more or less ended in the fall of 1979, when I had taken the film class. Eventually, I became a high school teacher and those interests remained in my memory or on bookshelves.
What an interesting program! It's quite striking to see Zamyatin's masterpiece placed alongside Gladkov's "Cement" - a purely propagandistic work - in the same curriculum. While Gladkov's work has largely faded into obscurity, this diverse selection must have offered an excellent perspective on Soviet culture. You clearly had a fascinating and immersive experience.
Welcome to the club, Deborah! It will be interesting to learn your impressions of the novel, as your first one. Have you read anything from Russian classical literature?
Reading Dostoevsky will be a circling back to the mid-1970’s. I was inspired to read—well, make the attempt—FD’s Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov by Solzhenitsyn’s story. I started the above novels as well as The Idiot and Notes. I truly cannot remember whether I finished any of them. In college I took a couple of Russian/Soviet history classes. We were assigned literature which I appreciated—Tolstoy’s Childhood, something by Aksakov, and later Bely’s St Petersburg, and others. Later I read Turgenev, Babel, . . . and a few other volumes but did not get to them. It’s been a long time since I sunk into this literature. Finally read War and Peace a decade ago. This was a mini-autodidactic moment in my life and expressive of my scattered interests over the years.
I purchased the bicentennial edition of TBK translated by Pevear and Volokhonsky and have on order the McDuff translation.
Hoping I can sustain through the year and reacquaint myself to the me 50+ years ago.
Welcome, Michael! You already have rich experience with Russian literature. Babel is rarely mentioned when discussing Russian literature. I'm confident that you'll find it easy to follow the relaxed schedule in the club. And for those who want to dive deeper, this is an excellent time to read additional materials. I'm hoping for a great year. Feel free to ask questions anytime.
First time reading Dostoevsky and I very much appreciate the lengths you are going to facilitate this read through. I am excited that my introduction to this author will be accompanied with articles and community commentary to get the richest experience possible.
I have the Bicentennial edition of the P&V translation which I am combining with its audiobook.
The schedule is printed, the bookmark is set, the end table is dusted and the coaster awaits its cup. I am ready.
I'm happy to welcome you to our club, Tommy. I hope you'll enjoy Dostoevsky, though some say that starting with The Brothers Karamazov is challenging.
I appreciate your preparation. I'll do my best to make this journey interesting, and please feel free to ask any questions along the way.
Thank you for such generosity! I am excited for this!
Welcome to the club. I hope this will be an exciting year
Hello Dana, best wishes for the Holidays and the new year. I have Brothers karamazov in English and Spanish. I bought Avsey's translation for this slow read. My Spanish book is translated by J. Santos Hervás, I will use that as well. I have read Crime and Punishment, White Nights, and The Idiot. I saw that there is a biography in English of Dostoyevsky's wife, which looks like it will be interesting (The Gambler Wife), do you know it?) I would like to read that at some point.
I'm glad you're staying with us in the club, Paul.
Though I haven't read this particular Kaufman book yet, I'm familiar with it. He drew from multiple sources, including two fascinating memoirs by Dostoevsky's wife Anna, which I have read. Kaufman has apparently transformed these materials into a more literary narrative. I've seen many positive reviews of "The Gambler's Wife" and intend to read it myself.
I'm planning this year to read most of the works of Dostoevsky inspired by the reddit's a year of reading subs. I'm planning to read TBk with your club because it's long and I don't want to rush reading it.
That being said I'm reading David McDuff's translation. Excited to read this tome with you!
Welcome. Have you seen those posts on the Dostoevsky subreddit? I recently saw a post there about someone who had read all of Dostoevsky and didn't know what to do with themselves.
Yesss! That's the main reason why I want to do it. 🤭
I’m excited! Thank you for leading us in this reading adventure.
Thank you for participating in the reading, Annette! We truly have a long and interesting journey ahead of us.
I'm really looking forward to this! I'm reading the P&V translation, and so far, I've read The Brothers Karamazov, The Idiot, and Crime and Punishment. I'm excited to reread TBK—there’s so much depth, and I feel like I missed a lot the first time around!
Welcome to the club, Hillary. I hope that your second reading of the novel will bring no less pleasure, and instead will reveal something new.
This sounds wonderful! Thank you. I've read Crime and Punishment, Notes from Underground, The Idiot, Demons and a short story called 'Bobok'. This book club comes at a good time since I was planning on reading TBK next. After finishing C&P I immediately considered Dostoevsky my favourite author. There is no artist of the modern era who understands and addresses the spiritual condition of our time better than he does, in my opinion. This judgment was only confirmed by reading his other novels. For TBK, I will be reading the Norton Critical Edition which is a revision of Garnett's translation. This should avoid the well-known issues you described while retaining her prose which I quite like.
It's great to see another Dostoevsky enthusiast in the club. I think you won't be disappointed by the novel. I have mixed feelings about Garnett - on one hand, I'm grateful to her as she did an enormous amount of work in her time, translating all of Dostoevsky, and it's particularly thanks to her that he became so well-known in the English-speaking world. But precisely because of this, she didn't spend much time on each translation, and now there are translations that are closer to Dostoevsky's style. But the most important thing is always to enjoy what you're reading - if you like Garnett's writing style, then she's the translator for you.
I have the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation but may get another one as I didn't particularly like their translation of Crime and Punishment. I can't remember what one I read back in my uni days and no longer have that copy. Whichever one I read though, I'm looking forward to it immensely! Thank you for running this group!
As far as I found, The Brothers has far fewer translations compared to Crime and Punishment. MacDuff has been mentioned here several times, so I'm thinking of getting his translation for reference as well. Is he a good translator? I've settled on Avsey for now, but I haven't come across his translation of Crime and Punishment, so this is actually the only translation by him that I have.
I read McDuff's translation of Crime and Punishment last year and it was decent.
This page gives a thorough outline of what's available and what you might choose for various reasons:
https://welovetranslations.com/2022/01/10/whats-the-best-translation-of-the-brothers-karamazov/
Hi Dana, I have just subscribed to your reading group for "The Brothers Karamazov." I have read the Pevear & Volokhonsky translation before, but if you think the Ignat Avsey translation is different enough, then I'll be happy to buy it also.
I have read all of Dostovevsky's major novels and many of his short stories. In the last few years I started rereading most of the classics that I had read before; I find that I am only just beginning to understand and to really benefit from them. TBK is one of the novels that I think I need to reread really slowly and really closely to be able to appreciate fully. So glad that now I have a chance to read it together with other passionate readers. (I think you have to be a passionate reader to be willing to tackle a book like TBK.)
Looking forward to your guidance and our discussions!
Hi, Raymond.
The P&V translation is also highly regarded and often loved - it's a good translation too, but more academic rather than literary. If you already have it and enjoy reading it, then there's no need to spend money on another version - you should stick with reading that one.
But if there are parts of the translation you didn't like, or if you want to experience the book with a slightly different style and compare, then it could be an interesting experience. Ignat Avsey has done extensive work, and his version is more expressive, with the story flowing more smoothly. I'll also be primarily using his translation for chapter titles. It might be easier to follow.
I have just finished my first novel by Dostoevsky (Crime and Punishment) and I really want to read more so this Substack is perfect. I will be reading the translation in French by André Markowicz !
Welcome to the club, Anna! I hope this year will be interesting and exciting. I haven't read the French translation, but I know French, so it will be interesting to see how certain passages have been translated.
Translated and Annotated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky. Any thoughts on this edition? I'm looking forward to this experience.
While not my favorite, it's a well-regarded translation used by many readers. Some consider it their preferred version. The translation's extensive footnotes and explanations make it particularly valuable for academic study.
Hello! I read several books from Dostoyevsky when I was in high school. I was very much into Russian classics then, I wish I could say I retained much of it. So I feel like I am starting anew.
I am slow reading the War & Peace by Tolstoy with Simon Haisell and I’ve decided to join yours too and make this my Russian Lit year.
I have ordered the Avsey’s translation. Excited for this adventure.
I'm delighted to see you in the club, Nuray! Simon's War and Peace club was one of a kind—I enjoyed participating there, even though I only joined occasionally. I hope our journey together will be exciting for everyone!
Hello! The P&V translation is the one I know, so sticking with that. I’ve read Dostoevsky’s big five once each, so this will be my second reading of TBK. I came to Dostoevsky through existentialism, and he remains my favorite existentialist. Joined a read Ulysses in 80 Days club on FB last summer, and was very successful, and TBK is one of my favorites, so excited for a slow read and a proper consideration.
Welcome to the club, Maci! It's wonderful to meet those who enthusiastically reread the novel. That says a lot about Dostoevsky.
Who is your favorite existentialist? Camus, I assume? He shares many ideas with Dostoevsky.
Ulysses in 80 days is quite intensive - our pace is much more relaxed!
Yeah, Camus Myth of Sisyphus, and Demons was my entry point. That’s what got me reading the big five.
After I graduated university and after a few years of work and floundering as a husband and father, I enrolled as a post-bac student at San Diego State. The history department a great class on Soviet film, where such as Potemkin, Alexander Nevsky, etc. But we also were assigned the literature of the early Soviet era: Babel was included as well "We" by Zamyatin and "Cement"(?). While an undergrad and community college transfer at UCLA, I contrived by own emphasis on Russian/Soviet studies. So it included history, political science (my misbegotten major), geography, and even one quarter of the Russian language. All of this more or less ended in the fall of 1979, when I had taken the film class. Eventually, I became a high school teacher and those interests remained in my memory or on bookshelves.
What an interesting program! It's quite striking to see Zamyatin's masterpiece placed alongside Gladkov's "Cement" - a purely propagandistic work - in the same curriculum. While Gladkov's work has largely faded into obscurity, this diverse selection must have offered an excellent perspective on Soviet culture. You clearly had a fascinating and immersive experience.
Very excited to join this book club. I have the Avsey translation and am glad to see I am not alone in this being my first reading of Dostoevsky.
Welcome to the club, Deborah! It will be interesting to learn your impressions of the novel, as your first one. Have you read anything from Russian classical literature?
Reading Dostoevsky will be a circling back to the mid-1970’s. I was inspired to read—well, make the attempt—FD’s Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov by Solzhenitsyn’s story. I started the above novels as well as The Idiot and Notes. I truly cannot remember whether I finished any of them. In college I took a couple of Russian/Soviet history classes. We were assigned literature which I appreciated—Tolstoy’s Childhood, something by Aksakov, and later Bely’s St Petersburg, and others. Later I read Turgenev, Babel, . . . and a few other volumes but did not get to them. It’s been a long time since I sunk into this literature. Finally read War and Peace a decade ago. This was a mini-autodidactic moment in my life and expressive of my scattered interests over the years.
I purchased the bicentennial edition of TBK translated by Pevear and Volokhonsky and have on order the McDuff translation.
Hoping I can sustain through the year and reacquaint myself to the me 50+ years ago.
Welcome, Michael! You already have rich experience with Russian literature. Babel is rarely mentioned when discussing Russian literature. I'm confident that you'll find it easy to follow the relaxed schedule in the club. And for those who want to dive deeper, this is an excellent time to read additional materials. I'm hoping for a great year. Feel free to ask questions anytime.