Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky and Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky

Raskolnikov, a destitute and desperate former student, wanders through the slums of St Petersburg and commits a random murder without remorse or regret. He imagines himself to be a great man, a Napoleon: acting for a higher purpose beyond conventional moral law. But as he embarks on a dangerous game of cat and mouse with a suspicious police investigator, Raskolnikov is pursued by the growing voice of his conscience and finds the noose of his own guilt tightening around his neck. Only Sonya, a downtrodden sex worker, can offer the chance of redemption.

It may be fairly ridiculous to give this book “only” four stars, but, despite the great stirring of ideas that I have had while reading it, some of the structure of the book left me wanting. The ideas are myriad, the imagery is fascinating, and I'm sure all of that will continue to impress itself on me for...well, forever. That said, I really think this book could have used an editor, especially the last half or so. Blasphemy, by somebody who just doesn't really “get it”? Maybe.

I'm sure I'll read this again someday, just like I did over 20 years ago, and get a different set of ideas about it–which is, of course, part of what makes it a great book.

A classic, a must read etc. But sometimes a bit tough to get through.

This took me insanely long to read... Man... It's not bad, a great book really, just a demanding read every time one picks it up. It probably wasn't the right time in my life to read this I suppose, but at the same time, the final ~100 pages or so is a rousing finish. It also seems a tragedy the novel character of Svidrigailov doesn't truly make an appearance until the novel is nearly ended... Mentioned quickly at the outset but not seen until much later, he truly is a disgusting villain, and a fascinating contrast to the conflicting protagonist of Raskolnikov who is perhaps himself given too much of a pass by Dostoevsky. The best part of this novel to me, as Karamazov and The Idiot before, is the concept of the “Laceration” repeated again. This is finalized and perfected in Karamazov but here it is again present, the nature of human beings to err and to continue in their prideful course to harm others and themselves. Raskolnikov torments those who love him simply to remind himself of their love, it is shameful behavior and alienated me from him as a protagonist. At the same time, it's hard not to see that this is still common behavior today, shame and pride push people beyond all sense. It's a great book, yet again I think Karamazov is still the best synthesis of Dostoevsky's stream of consciousness prose and observations on human nature.

This is the greatest novel I've ever read. Have you ever looked at a painting or listened to a piece of classical music and had strong emotions about it? That's sort of how I feel about the book. Like, you just can't help but look at it and go, “wow that's a great piece of art. Normally I like shitty action movies, but I can tell this is great, even though I don't completely know why”