This first novel by Dostoevsky, published in 1846, consists of a series of letters between two distant cousins, who happen to live across the street from each other in squalid apartments in St. Petersburg. Makar Dievushkin, by the older of the two, works as a copyist, and lives in the kitchen of an apartment that he shares with another impoverished family. He is completely devoted to his cousin and correspondent, Barbara Alexievna, a young woman who has experienced great tragedies and is in poor health. Dostoevsky is able to vividly portray mid-19th century St. Petersburg and the abject poverty through Makar's letters, and both cousins effectively describe the desperation that they face. Despite their dismal conditions, the story is infused with humor, irony, and wit. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and finished it in one sitting. ( )

Well, this was Dostoevsky's first novel. Not bad! The novel consists of a series of letters between a middle aged man, Makara, and a distant relative who is a young woman living near to him, Vavara. They are both poverty-stricken. As time passes and their circumstances ebb and flow, the reader comes to know them through each other's eyes. Frankly, it is an odd situation. Their lives are so bitter, and at times they come close to destitution. In the end, one remains destitute both financially and emotionally, while one finds an out, although the reader is left to wonder which one is the real loser in the situation. Themes include: poverty, love, sacrifice, loss, grief, social class differences, and envy. ( )

The first book by Dostoevsky, this is a short and satisfying read, a ‘sentimental epistolary novel’ about two cousins living close by in circumstances of extreme poverty. Their letters reveal the struggles of two poor people - an elderly copying clerk (Devushkin) and a dishonored maiden (Varvara). Both characters are sensitive and fragile people, who hang onto the small joys of their companionship throughout their trials. However, both characters inevitably spiral towards a tragic ending, especially Devushkin who appears to disintegrate into oblivion by the last pages.

From what I have read so far, Dostovesky seems to be the chronicler of the poor, oppressed, and humiliated. This is a study of poverty, and the injustices of social order. The female is young and provides a good contrast to the older man whose life disintegrates as the story progresses. There are some wonderful character portraits – for example the tragic-comic character of Old Pokrovsky. This character was wonderfully portrayed and the scene when he runs behind the coffin of his beloved son sticks in my mind:

“The old man seemed not to feel the cold and wet and ran wailing from one side of the cart to the other, the skirts of his old coat fluttering in the wind like wings. Books were sticking out from all his pockets; books kept falling out of his pockets into the mud. People stopped him and pointed to what he had lost, he picked them up and fell to racing after the coffin again.” So humorous and yet heart-rending at the same time.

Glad to have read this book early on in my Dostovesky foray.

Highly recommended. ( )

It's a series of letters between two of the saddest people in the world. But hey, if you're a lady and you're wicked poor, there is always marriage! Because what is happiness anyway? Dude, Dostoevsky, you don't even have the "Heh, oh what passes for humanity!" pick-me-up of Chekhov, you just slap that serving of dour down like the thin gruel your characters are forced to eat. It is, again, a really involving and interesting story, but not like—heavy? If you feel like a light read and a dose of the sad, then there you go. At this point, I am feeling like reading Dostoevsky is a waste of my time, as I'm getting little out of it. ( )

Read on the advice of my writing partner, Rob Callahan, it was indeen one of the most depressing books I have ever read. Plus I'm not sure if the translationw as entirely accurate. I believe that there are aspects of the story that were lost in the transition to English. ( )