Aanton Chekhov, widely hailed as the supreme master of the short story, also wrote five works long enough to be called short novelshere brought together in one volume for the first time, in a masterly new translation by the award-winning translators Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky. The Steppethe most lyrical of the fiveis an account of a nine-year-old boy's frightening journey by wagon train across the steppe of southern Russia. The Duel sets two decadent figuresa fanatical rationalist and a man of literary sensibilityon a collision course that ends in a series of surprising reversals. In The Story of an Unknown Man, a political radical spying on an important official by serving as valet to his son gradually discovers that his own terminal illness has changed his long-held priorities in startling ways. Three Years recounts a complex series of ironies in the personal life of a rich but passive Moscow merchant. In My Life, a man renounces wealth and social position for a life of manual labor. The resulting conflict between the moral simplicity of his ideals and the complex realities of human nature culminates in a brief apocalyptic vision that is unique in Chekhov's work. From the Hardcover edition.

«One of the foremost dramatists of the 19th century, Russian author Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) created a body of work noted for its realistic dialogue and keen insights into human relationships. This collection of five one-act plays in the celebrated Constance Garnett translations shows Chekhov at his witty best. «The Anniversary» takes a lively look behind the frenetic scenes at a bank: a man overburdened with errands from friends and family gives a nearly maddened but ludicrous account of his chores and obligations in An Unwilling Martyr; and «The Wedding» depicts scenes from a wedding reception in which the mother of the bride assumes affected airs and deals with quarrelsome guests. In The Bear, a virtuous, spirited widow is pressed to repay a debt and ends up receiving an offer of marriage. «The Proposal» depicts the trauma of a would-be suitor who winds up in a wrangle over property. Theater lovers, students of drama and literature, and other readers, as well as amateur and professional groups performing these popular works, will welcome this convenient, inexpensive collection of comic gems by one of the masters of modern drama.»