Crime & Punishment

Quality is good

Not an easy but an incredibly rewarding one. This is far less about the crime itself and far more about guilt, morality, and the human conscience. It includes morally complex characters like Raskolnikov, Svidrigailov, Sonya, etc. Consider this a very slow read for most part and a lot of yapping.

Wont write a thing about the story, I'm sure you guys know enough if you've decided or are pondering about reading this. The translation is good, although a little confusing at times with names, and doesn't explain that Sonya, Sonechka, and Sofia are basically the name person, just different ways of using the same name. But so far I'm happy with the translation. Now, the book, this is a replaced version, the first one was damaged, the packaging was effortless beyond explanation, just a paper bag and the book put inside it, and nothing else to protect the structure of the book. First, they didn't deliver the book, then they delivered a terrible version of the book that was used or had been carelessly handled for god knows how many months. Upon replacement too, the packaging was the same but somehow this book is not as damaged as the one prior to this. Binding and spine is great, unlike the last book, cover is okayish, not damaged, there's a small scratch or something on the spine but it doesn't bother me. The colour is fading away from one side of the spine, and my initial thought was to let this go too but I really wanted to read this and the book is alright, and the printing is great with no signs of prior use or bad handling, so all good.

100 pages or crime rest is punishment 😭

It's beautiful. Not writing an actual book review but the delivery was fast and without any damage.

Very good quality

Book was a bit damaged around the edges

Got it without any damage, and the paper quality is quite good, but it’s slightly yellowish.

Physical quality it came in quite bad.

Love it!

Zeer interessant boek

The current Ukrainian conflict has brought into focus how differently many Russians seem to view the world, so it felt timely to read this classic novel and compare it to works by contemporary British novelists such as Dickens and Elizabeth Gaskell. In the same way that Putin, although constantly dealing in falsehoods, appears disinterested in Soviet-style depictions of utopian Russian society, so Dostoyevsky seems content to portray a dysfunctional and bleak St. Petersburg whilst evidently still convinced of the perceived evils of Western liberalism. I suppose the point is that, like Dickens, he was predominantly writing to entertain a domestic audience. The book does refer to topical philosophical and political debates but the author only subtly alludes to his own views (most notably concerning morality and the merits of religious faith).I don't think I've ever read a novel before that's so heavily comprised of dialogue; indeed many chapters are essentially a conversation between two (and sometimes a larger group) of characters. The scenes Dostoyevsky creates are consistently vivid and the exchanges credible: this is due to the skill not only of the author but also the translator. Occasionally you come across words, such as drinking-den, which you suspect sound much more evocative in Russian, but generally the English text flows well. Although there is a fair degree of plot overall, there are stretches in the book where not much is actually happening, providing an interesting contrast to Dickens. The fact that the latter tended to publish in weekly instalments, whereas Dostoyevsky apparently published each of 6 parts in one go, may go some way towards explaining this clear difference in styles.The book is not difficult to read, but I confess that the complexity of the names (and interchangeability of familiar and formal forms) drove me to the internet a few times to check I wasn't confusing different characters. The most unsatisfying part of the novel is its short epilogue ending, when the main protagonist undergoes a sudden shift in attitude that's hard to find entirely plausible. But I won't say any more about the plot, except to say that the main concept suggested by the title is masterful and wonderfully sustained.Finally a plea to publishing houses. Why they persist in putting pretentious essays that give away the entire plot as the introduction to classic literature is beyond me. Hopefully, like me, you will enjoy the book first and, if you can be bothered, scan through the scholarly opinions afterwards.

Genuinely one of the best books I've ever read.