Crime and Punishment (Penguin Classics)

Have always wanted to read this book but was put off by the number of pages. So glad I took the plunge. What a great book. It is deep, but so beautifully written...guess that's why it's a classic. Loved the book so much I intend on reading it again. Highly recommend it.

(No Spoilers) Crime and Punishment is the first work by Dostoyevsky that I've ever read. It is a poignant story of Raskolnikov's fall into torment and madness. Dostoyevsky is such a master at bringing his characters and their struggles to life.

What I love about the classics is each author has a unique writing style, and Dostoyevsky is no exception. Most of the story unfolds through lengthy (and sometimes excessively verbose) dialogue, but I grew to really like it by the end of the book. Very unique.

Product Quality: My new copy came in close to Excellent, not perfect. There were about 4 or 5 visible marks, the ink quality was perfect, and thin pages that are expected of penguin classics. Not a perfectly new copy but what is ought to be valued is the story inside. Translatition and Notes Review: Since I started and finished reading this version as a high school freshman, this translation is excellent and my preferred and recommended one. The notes are outstanding with accurate and intriguing details about references in the book. Story Review: This book is the Bible of fiction/historical fiction after The Iliad, a masterpiece that is commonly valued by the giants of fiction literature. Spoiler: It is a slow paced masterpiece that describes a man (Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov) that has killed humans and has to live with it. After I read this book, I never saw the world the same. Dostoyevsky’s literary figures are so incredible that metaphors are sometimes stretched across multiple pages. The first book that made me really sense and imagine things with Fyodor’s precise descriptions. Parts like the end of the third part made me shiver and have anxiety and others had me at the edge of my seat. This literary document has gone the deepest into thematic material than any other and deserves a perfect 10/10 as my favorite book of all time.

Some classics are difficult to get through, but Crime and Punishment is one that stays with you. I appreciate books that explore the complexity of human nature, guilt, and redemption, and this one does it brilliantly. The characters are memorable, the story is thought provoking, and the themes are just as relevant today as they were when it was written. If you enjoy books that challenge you and leave you reflecting long after you've finished the last page, this is definitely worth reading.

Really enjoyed this book. I liked the translation and found it more readable than other Dostoyevsky translations. The explanatory notes were also very helpful

It's seldom that I root for the evildoer of a novel or movie, but Dostoyevsky definitely had me doing it with "Crime and Punishment". Early in the novel, impoverished student Raskolnikov murders two innocent older women in order to make a quick buck (and also for deeper reasons revealed later in the novel). We then accompany Raskolnikov through the tumultuous aftermath, during which his feelings towards his evil deed revolve between complete indifference, intense guilt, and a rational desire to hide from the law. A formal investigation by the city, led by the effusive and enigmatic detective Porfiry Petrovich, comprises much of the novel. It's interesting that by a couple hundred pages following the murders, I'd begun to stop thinking of Raskolnikov as an evildoer but rather as someone who was simply insane half the time. At some point I began to sympathize with him and by the end of the novel I was positively rooting for him to escape apprehension and punishment. This is a testament to Dostoyevsky's skill at rendering his characters' thoughts and beliefs so well that the reader internalizes them to some degree. I found the Penguin edition translated by David McDuff to be very readable, not stilted at all like I'd heard that many translations of Dostoyevsky into English can be. In addition to many humorous turns of phrase that came through fine in the translation, dialogue in general seemed to flow naturally. The sense of oppressive gloom so prevalent in Dostoyevsky's works seemed to also be faithfully replicated by McDuff, as was Dostoyevsky's detached matter-of-fact style of narration. Of course, it's difficult to remain cheerful when reading about murder and people driven to desperate measures because of the abject poverty they're in. A must read for fans of serious fiction prepared to step away from the lighthearted for a while!

Book came in good condition, and the book is amazing. Although, books such as these aren’t for the faint of heart, they’re very philosophically motivated, but on the other hand, can be real page turners.

Physical quality it came in quite bad.

Love it!

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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.