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The Dream of a Ridiculous Man

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The Dream of a Ridiculous Man

By: Fyodor Dostoevsky
Narrated by: Jesse Livingston
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"The Dream of a Ridiculous Man" is a short story by Fyodor Dostoyevsky written in 1877. It chronicles the experiences of a man who decides that there is nothing of any value in the world. Slipping into nihilism with the "terrible anguish", he is determined to commit suicide. A chance encounter with a young girl, however, begins the man on a journey that re-instills a love for his fellow man.

Public Domain (P)2019 Jesse Livingston
Anthologies Anthologies & Short Stories Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Short Stories Dream
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I’m not sure why the publishers chose this narrator as it’s completely the wrong tone for Dostoevsky.

The wrong narrator for this book

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What a book!
As always Dostoyevsky take us a step further into our own nature.
The narrator is fantastic.

Best narration ever

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A bit on the short side, but that definitely suits the title better than if it were a full length novel. Dostoyevsky plays with the idea of evil, purpose and purity with his usual, pessimistic glee. I think this book, more than most, finds a way to express his thoughts on the nature of humanity, and our place in the universe. The performance of this book is certainly competent, and If you're ok with American accents then it will do the job just fine (though I know many prefer European VA for Dostoyevsky). Personally, I found the narration lacked some element of emotion, coming off as flat in places. Overall, definitely worth a listen, maybe 2 or 3 in fact.

A nihilistic diversion

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Narration made this a difficult read. I wish I had checked before purchase. At least it is a very short story

wrong narrator

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