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The Chekhov Collection of Short Stories

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The Chekhov Collection of Short Stories

By: Anton Chekhov
Narrated by: Richard Armitage
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About this listen

Whilst Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) is perhaps best for his plays such as Uncle Vanya and The Seagull, he was also a prolific author of short stories.

In this exclusive collection, Audible presents six of his most-celebrated short stories, chosen and performed by Richard Armitage.

Richard, whose interest in the work of Chekhov was sparked by his appearance as Astrov in a stage production of Uncle Vanya, also introduces the collection with a brief overview of each of the stories and his thoughts on why Chekhov’s short stories are not to be missed.

The collection contains the following stories:

'Ward 6'

In a mental asylum, a patient comes into conflict with a director of the institution.

'The Kiss'

During a party, a man becomes infatuated by a woman who accidentally kisses him in the dark.

'Betrothed'

A young woman strives to asset her independence by choosing education over an arranged marriage.

'The Black Monk'

An ageing scholar experiences strange hallucinations.

Is he a genius, or is he insane?

'Neighbours'

A beautiful young woman subverts society expectations by going to live with her neighbour, an older, married man.

'The Student'

A depressed young student has his spirits lifted by recounting an religious story to two strangers.

Public Domain (P)2020 Audible, Ltd Classics Short Story Funny Inspiring Student Short Stories Classics Literature Collection

Richard Armitage records Chekhov short stories at home

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Chekhov considered medicine to be his lawful wedded wife and literature to be his mistress. As well as the plays for which he is most celebrated, Chekhov was a prolific writer of short stories and this collection contains six of the best of them. The character descriptions are strong and we hear about simple hearted but dim witted peasants, dying men who are visited by phantoms and physicians in asylums who are as deranged as their patients. Apparently Chekhov wrote these works late in his life when he was suffering from consumption and this is surely reflected in the characters he creates who are stoic and crave the natural world.

The collection is expertly narrated by the actor Richard Armitage who explains in the prelude that having acted in Chekhov plays he wanted to find out more about who he was and I would recommend this to anyone who ponders the same questions.

There is more to Chekhov than his plays

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.Darkness of the writing was at times overwhelming and resonated with Covid times. The reading was good but could have been more nuanced. I had hoped for a more vital and gently humorous selection.

A grim miscellany. The content was unrelievedly s

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I’m not familiar with Chekhov’s short stories, but this curated collection of six is a fine example of the scope and variety of his writing. Chekhov is an acute observer of people, manners and mannerisms and his tales give some real insights into the patients in a ‘lunatic asylum’, the military taking afternoon tea, a depressed student and more.

The Kiss is relatively light hearted and the effects of a young woman’s brief kiss on a repressed cavalry officer is acutely portrayed. Even the stories of the hospital patients have moments of compassion and light. An interesting collection and certainly a taster for more. The narration throughout by Richard Armitage is superb. He doesn’t do any silly Russian accents, but gives every character a plausible voice. Wonderful.

A comprehensive selection

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An excellent reading of one of the worlds best writers of short stories, There is not a word too many and there is depth in every story. Still the stories does not touch me in the way I thought they would

The perfect writer of short stories

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A good selection of Chekhov stories beautifully read. Simple but profound stories, well read. The reader did not ‘over-act’ or ‘over perform’ - he let the stories speak.

A Good Selection of Chekhov Stories

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