Leo Tolstoy: 582 books

In the town there was a shoemaker by the name of Martin, who lived in a basement with a tiny little window looking out into the street. Martin could see the people pass, and though he only got a glimpse of their feet, he still knew every one, for Martin could recognize people by their boots. Martin had lived in that basement for many a long year and had numbers of acquaintances.

The young Tsar had just ascended the throne. For five weeks he had worked without ceasing, in the way that Tsars are accustomed to work. He had been attending to reports, signing papers, receiving ambassadors and high officials who came to be presented to him, and reviewing troops. He was tired, and...

Two young men, Eugene Irtenev and his brother, are left a large inheritance after the death of their father. However, the inheritance is saddled with debts, and the brothers must decide whether or not to accept it. Eugene accepts the inheritance and buys off his brother's portion, thinking that he...

The wretched peasant Polikushka, who drinks too much, is a liar, and finds it hard to keep his "pickers and feelers" off the loose property of anyone, joyfully dreams of justifying his mistress' faith in him by safely fulfilling her commission to bring the package of money from town. His...

In a certain village there lived a peasant by the name of Ivan Scherbakoff. He was prosperous, strong, and vigorous, and was considered the hardest worker in the whole village. He had three sons, who supported themselves by their own labor. The eldest was married, the second about to be married, and the youngest took care of the horses and occasionally attended to the plowing.

Instead of memorizing vocabulary words, work your way through an actual well-written novel. Even novices can follow along as each individual English paragraph is paired with the corresponding Russian paragraph. It won't be an easy project, but you'll learn a lot.

What Men Live By - Simon, a rather poor shoemaker finds Michael, a very enigmatic character, naked in the midst of winter. After bringing him home and teaching him his craft Michael spends the next six years with Simon and family. During this time Michael smiles only three times each to signify...

Powers of Darkness is an incredible literary discovery: In 1900, Icelandic publisher and writer Valdimar Ásmundsson set out to translate Bram Stoker’s world-famous 1897 novel Dracula. Called Makt Myrkranna (literally, “Powers of Darkness”), this Icelandic edition included an original preface...

Written in 1886, DARKNESS was and is considered remarkably gruesome, and it was almost instantly banned in Russia. It fell to the New York stage to give the drama its best known success, first in a 1904 Yiddish version and then in a 1920 English translation. The story, usually described as "a...

Conversations between a Pagan and a Christian. Story from the Time of the Ancient Christians. Guests were one day assembled in a wealthy house, and a serious conversation on life was started. They spoke of present and of absent people, and they could not find a single man who was satisfied with his life....

In the town of Surat, in India, was a coffee-house where many travellers and foreigners from all parts of the world met and conversed. One day a learned Persian theologian visited this coffee-house. He was a man who had spent his life studying the nature of the Deity, and reading and writing books upon...