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The Brothers Karamazov

(Bicentennial Edition)

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The Brothers Karamazov

By: Fyodor Dostoevsky, Richard Pevear - translator, Larissa Volokhonsky - translator
Narrated by: Ben Miles
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This program is read by renowned English actor Ben Miles, best known for his narration of Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall trilogy.

“Ben Miles's English accent is perfect for the text of this recent, award-winning translation. He delivers narrative sections in a consistent tone, and his expression is perfect…An excellent match of voice and text.”—AudioFile

Winner of the Pen/Book-of-the-Month Club Translation Prize

The award-winning translation of Fyodor Dostoevsky's classic novel of psychological realism.

The Brothers Karamazov is a murder mystery, a courtroom drama, and an exploration of erotic rivalry in a series of triangular love affairs involving the “wicked and sentimental” Fyodor Pavlovich Karamazov and his three sons—the impulsive and sensual Dmitri; the coldly rational Ivan; and the healthy, red-cheeked young novice Alyosha. Through the gripping events of their story, Dostoevsky portrays the whole of Russian life, is social and spiritual striving, in what was both the golden age and a tragic turning point in Russian culture.

This award-winning translation by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky remains true to the verbal
inventiveness of Dostoevsky’s prose, preserving the multiple voices, the humor, and the surprising modernity of the original. It is an achievement worthy of Dostoevsky’s last and greatest novel.

A Macmillan Audio production from Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Biographical Fiction Christian Fiction Classics Classics & Allegories Editors Select Genre Fiction International Mystery & Crime Mystery World Literature Russia Witty
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Critic reviews

“[Dostoevsky is] at once the most literary and compulsively readable of novelists we continue to regard as great . . . The Brothers Karamazov stands as the culmination of his art--his last, longest, richest and most capacious book. [This] scrupulous rendition can only be welcomed. It returns to us a work we thought we knew, subtly altered and so made new again.” —Donald Fanger, Washington Post Book World

“It may well be that Dostoevsky's [world], with all its resourceful energies of life and language, is only now--and through the medium of this translation--beginning to come home to the English-speaking reader.” —John Bayley, The New York Review of Books

“Heartily recommended to any reader who wishes to come as close to Dostoevsky's Russian as it is possible.” —Joseph Frank, Princeton University

“Far and away the best translation of Dostoevsky into English that I have seen . . . faithful . . . extremely readable . . . gripping.” —Sidney Monas, University of Texas

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Brilliant translation, brilliantly read, thoroughly enjoyed listening. Would strongly recommend to anyone looking for a lively translation 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Brilliant all round

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The orator is the best I have heard. Thank you .. I hope to hear more from you.

The brothers Karamazov

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Wonderful. Amazing narration and an incredible book. Just superb. Ben Miles’ performance is off the charts.

An absolute masterpiece

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I find that when Dostoyevsky starts one of his long dissertations on Russianness and Russian politics with a small “p” I get a bit lost. Having it read to one made these passages much less onerous for me. I also found Ben Miles’s clever use of accents for all the characters very helpful in understanding the minutiae of the Russian class system in the 19th century. Dostoyevsky is undoubtedly a marvellous story teller, and Ben Miles’s interpretation of the Brothers Karamazoff made it more far enjoyable for me than when I first read it.

This made Dostoyevsky much more accessible for me

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The reader did a fantastic job! Realistic, believable, and with all the seriousness this book deserves.

Fantastic performance!

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