“She had always been alone, and she would always be alone.” Chapter 1: Kōko’s Solitude Kōko, a divorced single mother in her thirties, lives in Tokyo with her […]
Seven Years
“People don’t change, they only reveal themselves.” Chapter 1: The Architect and His Life The novel opens with Alex, a successful architect in Munich, reflecting on his seemingly […]
Mitya’s Love
“Love is a mystery. Everything in it is a mystery: how it arises, how it develops, how it disappears.” Chapter 1: Mitya’s Infatuation The story begins with Mitya, […]
First Love
“First love is a revolution… The monotonous and correct order of established life is broken down and destroyed in one instant…” — Ivan Turgenev Chapter 1 The story […]
A Month in the Country
“Love is not a feeling… it’s an art.” Act 1 The play opens at the Islayev estate, where Natalya Petrovna, the bored and restless wife of the wealthy […]
The Lady with the Dog
“If you are afraid of loneliness, don’t marry.” — Anton Chekhov, The Lady with the Dog Part I: Yalta Dmitri Gurov, a married Moscow banker in his late […]
Boyhood
“The whole difference between people lies in the process by which they arrive at truth.” Chapter 1: Departure from Childhood Nikolai (the protagonist) reflects on leaving his childhood […]
Childhood
“Happy, happy, never-returning time of childhood! How can one help loving and cherishing its memories?” Chapter 1: The Morning of Departure The story begins with ten-year-old Nikolenka Irtenev […]
The Charterhouse of Parma
“To the happy few.” — Stendhal, dedication in The Charterhouse of Parma Part 1: Early Life and Napoleon’s War The novel opens with Fabrizio del Dongo, a young […]
The Red and the Black
“The truth, the harsh truth.” — Stendhal, The Red and the Black The Red and the Black follows Julien Sorel, a young, ambitious man from a provincial French […]