The Lady With the Dog and Other Stories

A factory heiress spends Christmas weighing her wealth against the loneliness it bought her. A short, sharp study of class and the chances people let pass.

Anton Chekhov

The opening volume of the Constance Garnett series, led by the portrait of a woman who can only ever borrow her opinions from whoever she loves.

Anton Chekhov

Opens with the famous wager between a banker and a lawyer over fifteen years of solitary confinement. The rest of the collection keeps the same interest in what people trade away.

Anton Chekhov

Stories built around the ordinary confusions of affection, from a man dissecting his own love letter to quieter domestic portraits. A good entry point for new readers.

Anton Chekhov

A landowner and his estranged wife clash over famine relief while their marriage quietly collapses. The longer pieces here give the characters room to turn.

Anton Chekhov