1
of
1
Poor Folk and Other Stories
Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.
Check link for latest rating. ( 1,053 ratings, 98 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still
learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Summary
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2600
Unit price
/
Unavailable
Backorder
STOCK ARRIVING MID AUGUST
Order now to secure your copy from our next shipment
Found a better price? Request a price match
Poor Folk and Other Stories
$2600
Unit price
/
Unavailable
Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?
If you seek a profound exploration of human complexity, this collection offers an emotionally rich journey through themes of poverty, love, and societal struggles. Dostoyevsky's early work provides a compelling glimpse into the lives of ordinary people, blending compassionate storytelling with incisive social commentary.
Presents the story of a tragic relationship between an impoverished copy clerk and a young seamstress, told through their passionate letters to each other. This title portrays a dreamer hero who is captivated by a curious couple and becomes their lodger.
With their penetrating psychological insight and their emphasis on human dignity, respect and forgiveness, Dostoyevsky's early short stories contain the seeds of the themes that came to his major novels.
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
A collection of some of Dostoyevsky's finest short stories.
With their penetrating psychological insight and their emphasis on human dignity, respect, and forgiveness, Dostoyevsky's early short stories contain the seeds of the themes that came to his major novels. Poor Folk, the author's first great literary triumph, is the story of a tragic relationship between an impoverished copy clerk and a young seamstress, told through their passionate letters to each other.
In The Landlady, Dostoyevsky portrays a dreamer hero who is captivated by a curious couple and becomes their lodger. Mr Prokharchin, inspired by a true story, is a sly comedy centring on an eccentric miser, and Polzunkov is a powerful character sketch which, in common with the other tales in this volume, questions the very nature of existence.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9780140445053
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 24 November 1988
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Penguin Classics
Contributors:
- Translated by David McDuff
- Translated by David McDuff
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 16.0mm
Width: 130.0mm
Height: 197.0mm
Weight: 215g
Pages: 288
About the Author
Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky was born in Moscow in 1821, the 2nd of 7 children. From 1849 to 1854 he lived in a convict prison, and in later years his passion for gambling led him deeply into debt. In 1880 he delivered his famous address at theunveiling of Pushkin's memorial in Moscow; he died six months later in 1881. David McDuff has translated a number of works for the Penguin Classics, including The Idiot, Crime and Punishment and the Brothers Karamazov, and Tolstoy's The Kreutzer Sonata and Other Stories.
Also by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
View all-
The Brothers Karamazov
When brutal landowner Fyodor Karamazov is murdered, the lives of his sons are changed irrevocably: Mitya, the sensualist, whose bitter rivalry with his father immediately places him under suspicion for parricide; Ivan, the intellectual, whose mental tortures drive him to breakdown; the spiritual Alyosha, who tries to heal the family's rifts; and the shadowy figure of their bastard half-brother Smerdyakov....Paperback$2300Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
The Idiot
A new translation of Dostoyevsky's great novel of suffering and sickness. Inspired by an image of Christ's suffering, Dostoyevsky set out to create a protagonist with "a truly beautiful soul" and to trace the fate of such an individual as he comes into contact with the brutal reality of contemporary society. The novel begins when the innocent epileptic Prince Myshkin...Paperback$2000Elsewhere:$2300Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
White Nights
46 new books in the bestselling Little Black Classics series, to celebrate the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946 My God! A whole minute of bliss! Is that really so little for the whole of a man's life?Paperback$1200Elsewhere:$1299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Demons
A major new translation of one of Dostoyevsky's four great novels. Demons presents Pyotr and Stavrogin as the leaders of a Russian revolutionary cell, with an ambitious aim to overthrow the Tsar, dismantle society, and seize power for themselves. Together, they train terrorists who are willing to go to any lengths to achieve their objectivesβ even if the mission means...Paperback$2400Elsewhere:$2600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Crime and Punishment
The acclaimed new translation of Dostoyevsky's masterpiece for Penguin Classics. 'Will I really - I mean, really - actually take an axe, start bashing her on the head, smash her skull to pieces? . . . Will I really slip in sticky, warm blood, force the lock, steal, tremble, hide, all soaked in blood . . . axe in hand?...Paperback$1800Elsewhere:$2100Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
White Nights
Introducing Little Clothbound Classics β irresistible, mini editions of short stories, novellas, and essays from the world's greatest writers, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith. Regarded as one of world literature's foremost novelists, Fyodor Dostoyevsky's short stories are also some of the best ever written. White Nights tells of love and loss on the streets of St. Petersburg. A Nasty...Hardback$2300Elsewhere:$2600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Crime and Punishment
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky is a masterful psychological drama set against the gritty backdrop of 19th-century St. Petersburg. The story follows Rodion Raskolnikov, an impoverished and disillusioned ex-student, who roams the streets, tortured by thoughts of greatness and contempt for societal norms. Consumed by monetary woes and driven by a deluded sense of justice, he plans and executes...Paperback$1800Elsewhere:$2100Unit price /UnavailableBackorderShips mid September -
The House of the Dead
The four years that Dostoevsky spent in a Siberian prison camp were nasty, brutish and long, the most agonising of his life. Its documentary detailβthe convicts and their fascinating stories, the wooden plank bed that they sleep on, the cabbage soup swimming with cockroaches that they eatβis made all the more vivid by the controlled, oddly impersonal tone of the...Paperback$2400Elsewhere:$2600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
The Idiot
Fyodor Dostoyevsky's The Idiot is an immaculate portrait of innocence tainted by the brutal reality of human greed. This Penguin Classics edition is translated from the Russian by David McDuff, with an introduction by William Mills Todd III. Returning to St Petersburg from a Swiss sanatorium, the gentle and naΓ―ve epileptic Prince Myshkinβthe titular 'idiot'βpays a visit to his distant...Hardback$6099Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
The Gambler and Other Stories
A new selection of seven of Dostoyevsky's best short stories, translated by Ronald Meyer. The Gambler and Other Stories is Fyodor Dostoyevsky's collection of one novella and six short stories reflecting his own life. Indeed, The Gambler, a story of a young tutor in the employment of a formerly wealthy Russian General, was written under a strict deadline so he...Paperback$2600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Crime and Punishment
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky is a profound exploration of guilt, redemption, and the human psyche. Set in the grimy streets of St Petersburg, the novel centres on Rodion Raskolnikov, a struggling and impoverished former student whose growing desperation leads him to commit a heinous act. Raskolnikov's journey is a labyrinth of moral dilemmas and harrowing decisions, where he...Hardback$4100Elsewhere:$4800Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Notes from Underground: Popular Penguins
The seminal work Notes from Underground: Popular Penguins by Fyodor Dostoyevsky delves deeply into the human psyche. This profound narrative introduces us to an anonymous narrator, a retired civil servant, deeply alienated from society. Feeling perpetually at odds with the world around him, he retreats to his "underground" existence, shunning social norms and despising the banalities of everyday life. The...Paperback$1300Elsewhere:$1599Unit price /UnavailableBackorderShips mid August
More from General Fiction
View all-
The Wedding People
'BEST READ OF THE YEAR SO FAR' THE TIMES 'BOOKS AS FUN AS THIS ONE ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN' GUARDIAN Phoebe Stone arrives at a grand beachside hotel in Rhode Island wearing her best dress and least comfortable shoes. Immediately she is mistaken for one of the wedding people β but she's actually the only guest at the Cornwall...Paperback$2399Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Throne of Glass Box Set (Paperback)
Enter the realm. Unleash the darkness. Live the legend. Discover the worldwide phenomenon of the #1 New York Times-bestselling Throne of Glass series in this gorgeous 8-book box set! In a land without magic, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She has no love for the vicious king who rules from his throne of glass, but she has not...Set$12400Elsewhere:$15500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Theo of Golden
THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON'For anything to be truly good, there must be love in it. Nothing is what it's supposed to be if love is not at the core.' One morning, a stranger arrives in the town of Golden. No one knows who he is or where he came fromβ¦His name is Theo and he's arrived there by chance β...Paperback$2899Elsewhere:$3499Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
The Score
Welcome to Briar U! Get ready for your newest obsession... Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy! Read The Score now for the perfect friends with benefits romance! He knows how to score, on and off the ice... Allie Hayes is in crisis mode. With graduation looming, she still doesn't have...Paperback$2499Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
The Goal
Welcome to Briar U!Get ready for your newest obsession . . . Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy!Read The Goal now for the perfect forced proximity romance! She's good at achieving her goals . . . College senior Sabrina James has her whole future planned out: graduate from college, kick...Paperback$2499Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
The Mistake
Welcome to Briar U! Get ready for your newest obsession . . . Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy! Read The Mistake now for the perfect second chance romance! He's a player in more ways than one . . . College junior John Logan can get any girl he wants....Paperback$2499Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Project Hail Mary
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, the SUNDAY TIMES and NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of The Martian, offers a gripping new adventure in hard science fiction. With endorsement from notable figures such as Barack Obama and a slew of five-star reviews, this novel promises a thrilling and intellectually stimulating journey. Ryland Grace, a lone astronaut, finds himself on a...Paperback$2399Elsewhere:$2400Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
New Release
Yesteryear
A BOLD AND BITING SATIRE. WILL HAVE YOU GASPING TO THE FINAL PAGE β Nita Prose WICKEDLY FUNNY, BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN AND FRIGHTENINGLY PERCEPTIVE β Abigail Dean INVENTIVE, ADDICTIVE, A WILD RIDE β Ashley Audrain SHOT THROUGH WITH HUMOUR AND LACED WITH DARKNESS β Clare Mackintosh The Stepford Wives meets The Handmaid's Tale β Hannah Deitch My name was Natalie Heller...Paperback$2999Elsewhere:$3699Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
New ReleaseOn Mystic Lake
One of the greatest storytellers of our time - Delia Owens, author of Where the Crawdads Sing Annie Colwater's only child has just left home for school in England. On that same day, her husband of twenty years confesses that he's in love with a younger woman. Left alone in the beautiful California house which was once a home, Annie...Paperback$3100Elsewhere:$3800Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
The Legacy
Welcome to Briar U! Get ready for your newest obsession . . . Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from the Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy! Read The Legacy now for the much-anticipated answer to the question: Where are they now? Four stories. Four couples. Three years of real life after graduation . . . A wedding....Paperback$2499Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
New ReleaseLand
Inspired by the mapping of Ireland in the mid nineteenth century, Land, theΒ new novel from the author of Hamnet, is at once intimate and epic: a portrait of a family navigating a legacy of upheaval and loss with love and hope. On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, TomΓ‘s and his reluctant son,Β Liam, are working for the great...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday -
Signed BookplateNew ReleaseLight Wielder
THE EPIC CONCLUSION TO METAL SLINGER, AKA THE BOOK WITH THE PLOT TWIST THAT BROKE THE INTERNET Sail the seas. Master the blade. Protect your heart. What would you do to have it all? READERS ARE GOING WILD FOR *METAL SLINGER* βThe BEST plot twist to ever grace my Kindleβ βββββ βThe author is a mastermind. Romantasy is back!!!!β βββββ...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Monday
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
General Fiction lists from the team
Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!
-
![]()
![]()
![]()
Hannah's listGeneral Fiction
Gothic Reads for Dark Nights
With the advent of movie adaptations like Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein, it looks like pop culture is seeing a revival of the...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Shirl's listGeneral Fiction
Shirl's Top 10 Most Recommended Books
These are my Top 10 books that I always recommend to my friends and whΔnau when they ask for recommendations for getting...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Books to Escape a Reading Slump
A reading slump can be a frustrating feeling and hard to break out of, but we've gathered together a list of crowd...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![Star Shipped]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Lizzy's Pride Fiction Picks!
June marks Global Pride Month so in case you're looking for your next great fiction read, here's a list of some of...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Readersβ Top 100 Novels of All Time - from The Guardian
There was some controversy when The Guardian released their critics and authors list of the top 100 novels of all time, but...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Shirl's listGeneral Fiction
Shirl's Favourite Books of 2026
The first half of 2026 has been packed with brilliant books, making it hard to choose favourites but here are a few...View the list
