Crime and Punishment

By Fyodor Dostoevsky

Book Overview

The two years before he wrote Crime and Punishment (1866) had been bad ones for Dostoyevsky. His wife and brother had died; the magazine he and his brother had started, Epoch, collapsed under its load of debt; and he was threatened with debtor's prison. With an advance that he managed to wangle for an unwritten novel, he fled to Wiesbaden, hoping to win enough at the roulette table to get himself out of debt. Instead, he lost all his money; he had to pawn his clothes and beg friends for loans to pay his hotel bill and get back to Russia. One of his begging letters went to a magazine editor, asking for an advance on yet another unwritten novel -- which he described as Crime and Punishment.
One of the supreme masterpieces of world literature, Crime and Punishment catapulted Dostoyevsky to the forefront of Russian writers and into the ranks of the world's greatest novelists. Drawing upon experiences from his own prison days, the author recounts in feverish, compelling tones the story of Raskolnikov, an impoverished student tormented by his own nihilism, and the struggle between good and evil. Believing that he is above the law, and convinced that humanitarian ends justify vile means, he brutally murders an old woman -- a pawnbroker whom he regards as "stupid, ailing, greedy...good for nothing." Overwhelmed afterwards by feelings of guilt and terror, Raskolnikov confesses to the crime and goes to prison. There he realizes that happiness and redemption can only be achieved through suffering. Infused with forceful religious, social, and philosophical elements, the novel was an immediate success. This extraordinary, unforgettable work is reprinted here in the authoritative Constance Garnett translation.
A selection of the Common Core State Standards Initiative.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0486415872
• ISBN13: 9780486415871
• Release Date: August 2001
• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Length: 448 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.2" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 14 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 9 and higher

Customer Reviews

This is not the edition I ordered.

I did not order this edition. I puposefully ordered a book with larger print. I cant read this. I already had a copy that was larger print than this but was difficult to read due to size print. Thats why I ordered another copy. Ive ordered many books form you but this is the first time this has happened. Disappointed.

Super small print, impossible to read!

Looks like an unfortunate attempt to squeeze Dostoyevsky into a pocket book. I wish I read the reviews first before buying it 😭😭. Dissapointed. Please, make it clearer for customers to distinguish between NORMAL book vs Pocket book lol. I gave 1 star for the format ! Book is obviously 5

Small print

I have been unable to read this copy as the print is extremely small. I will have to purchase an alternate copy.

Preferred Brothers over this

Required reading for anyone interested in Dostoevsky but not his best work.

Book condition

As described

Detective Novel? Not quite.

This is the first Dostoevsky book I have read, and I liked it immensely. I decided to read it because of the intriguing plot, as well as Dostoevsky's reputation. Something interesting about this novel is that Dostoevsky used a very "backwards" sort of character development. He had Raskolnikov commit a murder- with no apparent motive- and then spent the rest of the book exploring the character, rather than the other way around. So first we watch this character commit a horrible, terrible crime, one that we should denounce him for, and then we begin to get to know him, and he is revealed to have an astoundingly good character after all. I found myself liking Raskolnikov greatly, and I was able to identify with him as well. However, this book does not seem to fall under the guidelines of a "crime novel" nor a "psychological thriller". Yes, there is a crime, as well as a study of the protoganist's psyche, but it is not exactly thrilling. This is not the sort of story where you have to keep reading and reading to find out who committed the crime. You already know. Therefore, there is no mystery to keep you interested. Despite all these obstacles, Dostoevsky does what might be impossible for most writers. He makes you care about what happens to Raskolnikov. I was not thrilled, but engrossed. What kept me reading here was the desire to see if Raskolnikov would defeat his inner demons and turn himself in, or be arrested. I'd rather not reveal the ending but I would like to say that I found it extremely satisfying. The subplot, that of Luzhin trying to gain control over Dounia, might have only gotten in the way of another writer, but Dostoevsky was able to inspire such hate in me for Luzhin that I wanted to keep reading just to see him get what he deserved in the end. After reading this, I have decided to read Dostoevky's other works as well, and hopefully they will all be of the same high quality.