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In 1844, Dostoyevsky graduated as a military engineer and was awarded an army commission, but gave it up to pursue a literary career, writing essays, short stories, and novels. His first novel, Poor Folk, published in April of 1845, was an immediate success.
Several years later, Dostoyevsky became involved with a revolutionary group, the Petrashevsky Circle. When the government moved to suppress the group, Dostoyevsky was arrested and condemned to death. Government forces subjected him to a mock execution, after which he ended up being resentenced to four years of hard labor in a Siberian prison. While in Siberia, Dostoyevsky wrote Uncle’s Dream and Friend of the Family.
In 1857, Dostoyevsky was married to his first wife, Maria Dmitrievna Isaeva. He returned to St. Petersburg, where he published a monthly periodical called Time, which was later shut down by the government for covering the Polish Uprising of 1863. His wife died the next year, and throughout the next few years he struggled acutely with finances, depression, and an addiction to gambling.
In 1866, the publication of his novel, Crime and Punishment, was such a success that it placed him in the front rank of Russian writers. In 1867, he married the much younger Anna Grigoryevna Snitkina and they spent time travelling abroad. His next novel, The Idiot, published in a period of revolutionary agitation, was not considered timely, and likewise, the reception of The Adolescent (or The Raw Youth) was poor. However, his genius was immediately seen in his last novel, The Brothers Karamazov, which earned him an irrevocable place among the great Russian writers.
In Dostoyevsky’s last years, revolutionary activity in Russia increased, with attempts on the life of the czar and high state officials. He became a conservative and edited a conservative weekly until his death of a lung hemorrhage on February 9, 1891 in St. Petersburg.
Portrait by Vasily Perov, 1872
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
“You keep talking about ‘mystery’? What does it mean ‘fulfilling one’s mysterious destiny’?” I asked, looking around toward the door. I was glad we were alone and surrounded by complete stillness...
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
“At some thoughts one stands perplexed, especially at the sight of people’s sin, and asks oneself whether one should use force or love and humility. Always decide to use humble love...” Wise words from one of Russia’s greatest writers.
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
My friends, pray to God for gladness. Be glad as children, as the birds of heaven. And let not the sin of men disturb you in your actions. Fear not...
Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Natalia Osipova and Elena Avinova
One of the most famous passages in modern literature reimagined in a graphic novel adaptation Read More
Eberhard Arnold, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Dorothy Day, C. S. Lewis, J. Heinrich Arnold, Johann Christoph Arnold, Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Richard J. Foster, Søren Kierkegaard, Gerhard Lohfink, Charles E. Moore, George MacDonald, Thomas Merton, Henri J. M. Nouwen, Chiara Lubich and Catherine Doherty
Fifty-two readings on living in intentional Christian community to spark group discussion. ... Read More
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Dorothy Day, Søren Kierkegaard, C. S. Lewis, Philip Yancey, Eberhard Arnold, Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt, J. Heinrich Arnold, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Johann Christoph Arnold, George MacDonald, Henri J. M. Nouwen, Sadhu Sundar Singh, Thomas Merton, Leo Tolstoy, N. T. Wright and William H. Willimon
Has there ever been a more hard-hitting, beautifully written, theologically inclusive anthology of writings for Lent and Easter? It’s doubtful. —... Read More
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
These excerpts from Dostoyevsky's greatest novels explore the devastating (yet ultimately healing) social implications of the Gospels, and vividly... Read More
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Sojourners
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Mennonite Quarterly Review
Englewood Review for Books
Nancy Roberts, Catholic Sentinel
InterVarsity Emerging Scholars Network
Midwest Book Review
Paul Louis Metzger, Patheos
Kyle Roberts, Patheos
David Swartz, Patheos
Stanley Hauerwas
Publisher's Weekly starred review
Malcolm Muggeridge, from the Foreword
J. I. Packer, Regent College, Vancouver
Philip Yancey, Christianity Today
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