Misery - Anton Chekhov

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Author: Anton Chekhov

Genre: Classic, Short Story
Rating: 4.25 stars.

An impactful story about a sledge-driver whose emotions aren’t as important to his customers as his services are.

Iona Potapov, the sledge-driver, is waiting in the snow for a fare. When a military officer approaches him to ride to Vyborgskaya, the sledge driver sets off with his mare. But the journey doesn’t begin well as Iona is clearly battling some deep emotions. He gets more customers along the way, but all of them are intent on only one thing – reaching their destination. No one notices the poor driver who is desperate to unburden his grief. As the day goes on, Iona knows he can’t hold on to his feelings any more. And there’s only one party left who will give him a patient ear.

Iona’s misery comes out of every sentence, hinted at the start, vivid at the end. One can’t help feel sorry for him as his loss is huge but he has no one to share it with. With his beautiful prose, Chekov manages to depict the turmoil of the poor driver, that seems to borrow a lot from the dark and snowy atmosphere of the town.

If you love classic short stories, you can’t miss this one. Anton Chekov is one of the best short story writers, and this story will show you why.

As this story is in the public domain, it can be read online for free on various sites. I read it HERE.

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