In Reading Chekhov Janet Malcolm takes on three roles: literary critic, biographer and journalist. Her close readings of Chekhov’s stories and plays are interwoven with episodes from his life and framed by an account of a recent journey she made to St Petersburg. Malcolm demonstrates how the shadow of death that hovered over most of Chekhov’s literary career – he became consumptive in his twenties and died in his forties – is almost everywhere reflected in the work.

She writes of his childhood, his relationship with his family, his marriage, his travels, his early success, his exile to Yalta – always with an eye to connecting them to his themes and characters.

Format: Paperback
Published: UK, 2012
Publisher: Granta
Pages: 224
Language: EnglishISBN 13: 9781847085368
ISBN 10: 1847085368