Anton Chekhov: A Digital Bibliography

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov

Here is a list of digital editions of the works of Anton Chekhov (1860-1904). All of his major plays and short stories are in the public domain and available for free.

Between 1916 and 1922, a 13-volume set containing 201 short stories by Anton Chekhov and translated by Constance Garnett was published in the UK and the US. The good news is that the complete set is available for free digitally. The bad news is that the stories aren’t sequenced chronologically and the distribution of Chekhov masterpieces per volume is uneven. Chekhov’s most important stories were generally written after 1886, and appear in the first eight or nine volumes. Fortunately. a few of the volumes are well curated anthologies that make for good reading. Volume one is a well rounded collection that makes a great introduction to his work, volume five has more than a few great stories, and volume six is a particularly well edited collection of mostly peasant-themed stories. If you’re a stickler for chronological order, here’s a link where you can read all 201 stories in order.

I used Wikipedia’s list of Chekhov short stories and a list from the University of Adelaide to date each work. Charles W. Meister’s Chekhov Criticism:1880 Through 1986 (McFarland & Co., 1988) was also helpful. This bibliography of Garnett’s translations helped me to date the publication of each volume. The short story collections are ordered by the year in which the English translations appeared with the date of original Russian publication indicated for each story. (*) denotes key works.

Plays

Ivanoff (1897) tr. uncredited

The Sea-Gull (1896)* tr. uncredited

Uncle Vanya (1899/1900)* tr. uncredited

Swan Song (1887) tr. Marian Fell

Plays by Anton Chekhov, Second Series (19??) tr. Julius West

                              On the High Road (1884)

                              The Proposal (1886/89)

                              The Wedding (1889)

                              The Bear (1888)

                              A Tragedian in Spite of Himself (1889)

                              The Anniversary (18??)

                              The Three Sisters (1901)*

                              The Cherry Orchard (1904)*

Short Fiction

The Tales of Anton Chekhov Vols. 1-13

Volume 1: The Darling & Other Stories (1916)

                              “The Darling” (1898)*

                              “Ariadne” (1895)*

                              “Polinka” (1887)

                              “Anyuta” (1886)

                              “The Two Volodyas” (1893)*

                              “The Trousseau” (1883)

                              “The Helpmate” (1895)

                              “Talent” (1886)

                              “An Artist’s Story” (1896)*

                              “Three Years” (1895)*

Volume 2: The Duel & Other Stories (1916)

                              “The Duel” (1891)*

                              “Excellent People” (1886)

                              “Mire” (1886)

                              “Neighbours” (1892)

                              “At Home”(1897)

                              “Expensive Lessons” (1887)

                              “The Princess” (1889)

                              “The Chemist’s Wife” (1886)

Volume 3: The Lady with the Dog & Other Stories (1917)

                              “The Lady with the Dog” (1899)*

                              “A Doctor’s Visit” (1898)

                              “An Upheaval” (1886)

                              “Ionitch” (1898)*

                              “The Head of the Family” (1885)

                              “The Black Monk” (1894)*

                              “Volodya” (1887)*

                              “An Anonymous Story” (1893)*

                              “The Husband” (1886)

Volume 4: The Party & Other Stories (1917)

                              “The Party” (1888)*

                              “Terror” (1892)

                              “A Woman’s Kingdom” (1894)*

                              “A Problem” (1887)

                              “The Kiss” (1887)*

                              “’Anna on the Neck’” (1895)*

                              “The Teacher of Literature” (1894)*

                              “Not Wanted” (1886)

                              “Typhus” (1887)*

                              “A Misfortune” (1886)

                              “A Trifle from Life” (1886)

Volume 5:  The Wife & Other Stories (1918)

                              “The Wife” (1892)*

                              “Difficult People”(1886)

                              “The Grasshopper” (1892)*

                              “A Dreary Story” (1889)*

                              “The Privy Councillor” (1886)

                              “A Man in a Case” (1898)*

                              “Gooseberries” (1898)*

                              “About Love” (1898)*

                              “The Lottery Ticket” (1887)*

Volume 6: The Witch & Other Stories (1918)

                              “The Witch” (1886)*

                              “Peasant Wives” (1891)*

                              “The Post” (1887)

                              “The New Villa” (1899)*

                              “Dreams” (1886)

                              “The Pipe” (1887)

                              “Agafya” (1886)

                              “At Christmas Time” (1899)

                              “Gusev” (1890)*

                              “The Student” (1894)*

                              “In the Ravine” (1900)*

                              “The Huntsman” (1885)*

                              “Happiness” (1887)

                              “A Malefactor” (1885)

                              “Peasants” (1897)*

Volume 7: The Bishop & Other Stories (1919)

                              “The Bishop” (1902)*

                              “The Letter” (1887)

                              “Easter Eve” (1886)

                              “A Nightmare” (1886)

                              “The Murder” (1895)

                              “Uprooted” (1887)

                              “The Steppe” (1888)*

Volume 8: The Chorus Girl & Other Stories (1920)

                              “The Chorus Girl” (1886)

                              “Verotchka” (1887)

                              “My Life at a Country House” (1896)

                              “A Father” (1887)

                              “On the Road” (1886)

                              “Rothschild’s Fiddle” (1894)

                              “Ivan Matveyitch Zinotchka” (1886)

                              “Bad Weather” (1887)

                              “A Gentleman Friend” (1886)

                              “A Trivial Incident” (1886)

Volume 9: The Schoolmistress & Other Stories (1920)

                              “The Schoolmistress” (1897)*

                              “A Nervous Breakdown” (1888)

                              “Misery” (1886)

                              “Champagne” (1886)

                              “After the Theatre” (1892)

                              “A Lady’s Story” (1887)

                              “In Exile” (1892)*

                              “The Cattle-Dealers” (1887)

                              “Sorrow” (1885)

                              “On Official Duty” (1899)

                              “The First-Class Passenger” (1886)

                              “A Tragic Actor” (1883)

                              “A Transgression” (1887)

                              “Small Fry” (1885)

                              “The Requiem” (1886)

                              “In the Coach-House” (1887)

                              “Panic Fears” (1886)

                              “The Bet” (1889)*

                              “The Head-Gardener’s Story” (1894)

                              “The Beauties” (1888)

                              “The Shoemaker” (1888)

Volume 10: The Horse-Stealers & Other Stories (1921)

                              “The Horse-Stealers” (1890)

                              “Ward No. 6” (1892)*

                              “The Petchenyeg” (1897)

                              “A Dead Body” (1885)

                              “A Happy Ending” (1887)

                              “The Looking-Glass” (1885)

                              “Old Age” (1885)

                              “Darkness” (1887)

                              “The Beggar” (1887)

                              “A Story Without a Title” (1888)*

                              “In Trouble” (1887)

                              “Frost” (1887)

                              “A Slander” (1883)

                              “Minds in Ferment” (1884)

                              “Gone Astray” (1885)

                              “An Avenger” (1887)

                              “The Jeune Premier” (1886)

                              “A Defenceless Creature” (1887)

                              “An Enigmatic Nature” (1883)

                              “A Happy Man” (1886)

                              “A Troublesome Visitor” (1886)

                              “An Actor’s End” (1886)

Volume 11: The Schoolmaster & Other Stories (1921)

                              “The Schoolmaster” (1886)

                              “Enemies” (1887)

                              “The Examining Magistrate” (1887)

                              “Betrothed” (1903)

                              “From the Diary of a Violent-Tempered Man” (1887)

                              “In the Dark” (1886)

                              “A Play” (1887)

                              “A Mystery” (1886)

                              “Strong Impressions” (1886)

                              “Drunk” (1887)

                              “The Marshal’s Widow” (1885)

                              “A Bad Business” (1887)

                              “In the Court” (1886)

                              “Boots” (1882-85)

                              “Joy” (1883)

                              “Ladies” (1886)

                              “A Peculiar Man” (1886)

                              “At the Barber’s” (1883)

                              “An Inadvertence” (1887)

                              “The Album” (1884)

                              “Oh! The Public!" (1885)

                              “A Tripping Tongue” (1886)

                              “Overdoing It” (1885)

                              “The Orator” (1886)

                              “Malingerers” (1885)

                              “In the Graveyard” (1884)

                              “Hush!” (1886)

                              “In an Hotel” (1882-85)

                              “In a Strange Land” (1885)

Volume 12: The Cook’s Wedding & Other Stories (1922)

                              “The Cook’s Wedding” (1885)

                              “Sleepy” (1888)

                              “Children” (1886)

                              “The Runaway” (1887)

                              “Grisha” (1886)

                              “Oysters” (1884)

                              “Home” (1887)

                              “A Classical Student” (1883)

                              “Vanka” (1886)*

                              “An Incident” (1886)

                              “A Day in the Country” (1886)

                              “Boys” (1887)

                              “Shrove Tuesday” (1887)

                              “The Old House” (1887)

                              “In Passion Week” (1887)

                              “Whitebrow” (1895)

                              “Kashtanka” (1887)

                              “A Chameleon” (1884)

                              “The Dependents” (1886)

                              “Who Was to Blame?” (1886)

                              “The Bird Market” (1883)

                              “An Adventure” (1887)

                              “The Fish” (1885)

                              “Art” (1886)

                              “The Swedish Match” (1884)

Volume 13: Love & Other Stories (1922)

                              “Love” (1886)

                              “Lights” (1888)

                              “A Story Without an End” (1886)

                              “Mari D’Elle” (1885)

                              “A Living Chattel” (1882)

                              “The Doctor” (1887)

                              “Too Early!” (1887)

                              “The Cossack” (1887)

                              “Aboriginies” (1887)

                              “An Inquiry” (1883)

                              “Marytrs” (1886)

                              “The Lion and the Sun” (1887)

                              “A Daughter of Albion” (1883)

                              “Choirsters” (1884)

                              “Nerves” (1885)

                              “A Work of Art” (1886)

                              “A Joke” (1885)

                              “A Country Cottage” (1885)

                              “A Blunder” (1886)

                              “Fat and Thin” (1883)

                              “The Death of a Government Clerk” (1883)

                              “A Pink Stocking” (1886)

                              “At a Summer Villa” (1886)

And just for good measure, here’s one more collection of short stories and a lone short story from different translators:

The House with the Mezzanine & Other Stories (1917) tr. S. S. Koteliansky & G.Cannan

                              “The House with the Mezzanine” (1896) (“An Artist’s Story”)*

                              “Typhus” (1887)*

                              “Gooseberries” (1898)*

                              “In Exile” (1892)*

                              “The Lady With The Toy Dog” (1899)*

                              “Goussiev” (1890)*
                              “My Life” (1896)*

"The Slanderer” (1901) tr. Herman Bernstein

And if you still can’t get enough of Chekhov, you can even read his notebook.

Note-Book of Anton Chekhov (1921) trans. by S. S. Koteliansky and Leonard Woolf


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Leo Tolstoy: A Digital Bibliography

Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910

Below is a list of links to the works of Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) that are in the public domain. All of his major works are available for free including each of his novels, the vast majority of his short fiction and all of his plays. I’ve included a half dozen of the most famous and significant religious, philosophical and critical works and one volume of Tolstoy's journal. Many of the available texts were translated by Louise and Aylmer Maude with the author's official sanction, but you'll also find translations by the usual 19th century suspects (Constance Garnett, C. J. Hogarth, Nathan Haskell Doyle, et al.)

If you're not quite ready for the epic heft of War and Peace or Anna Karenina (both wonderful works that are well worth the effort to read), there are several smaller works that you might consider first, like The Cossacks (a love story set in the Caucasus), Sevastopol, (a gripping fictionalized account of the author's real life experiences in the Crimean War), The Death of Ivan Ilyich (a novella about the dying days of a high court judge) or just about any of the short stories. Chances are if you like any of those works, you might very well get hooked. If so, there are plenty of great books to explore.

I used Wikipedia’s Tolstoy bibliography page and a bibliography from the University of Adelaide to date the works listed below. Other than that, I relied on the bibliographical information in the various editions themselves when available. Novels are listed in the chronological order of first Russian publication.  Short fiction is ordered by the year in which the English translations appeared with the date of origin indicated for each story. I've tried to arrange the short fiction titles so that they're more or less in chronological order. The titles of the novels and novellas are italicized and the short story titles appear in quotes. (*) denotes key works.

Novels

Childhood (1852) tr. C.J. Hogarth

Boyhood (1854) tr. C.J. Hogarth

Youth (1856) tr. C. J. Hogarth

The Cossacks (1863)* tr. Louise and Aylmer Maude

War & Peace (1869)* tr. Louise and Aylmer Maude

Anna Karenina (1877)* tr. Constance Garnett

Resurrection (1899) tr. Louise Maude

Short Fiction

The Russian Proprietor & Other Stories (1887) tr. Nathan Haskell Doyle

                              “The Russian Proprietor” (1852)

                              “Lucerne” (1857)

                              “Recollections of a Scorer” (1855)*

                              “Albert” (1858)

                              “Two Hussars” (1856)

                              “Three Deaths” (1859)

                              “A Prisoner in the Caucasus” (1872)*

Sevastopol (1855)* tr. Isabel F. Hapgood

Family Happiness (1859) tr. Louise and Aylmer Maude

“Where Love Is, There God Is Also” (1885) tr. Nathan Haskell Doyle

The Death of Ivan Ilyich (1886)* tr. Louise and Aylmer Maude

The Kreutzer Sonata & Other Stories (1889) tr. uncredited

                              The Kreutzer Sonata (1889)* with Tolstoy’s postscript 

                              “Ivan the Fool” (1885)

                              “A Lost Opportunity” (1889)

                              “Polikushka” (1863)

                              “The Candle” (1885)

What Men Live By & Other Tales (unknown date) tr. Louise and Aylmer Maude

                              “What Men Live By” (1881)*

                              “Three Questions”  (1903)*

                              “The Coffee-House of Surat” (1893)*

                              “How Much Land Does a Man Need?”  (1886)*

“Master and Man” (1895) tr. Louise and Aylmer Maude

“Father Sergius” (1898) tr. Louise and Aylmer Maude  

The Forged Coupon & Other Stories (1911) tr. uncredited

                              The Forged Coupon (19??)*

                              “After the Dance” (1903) (a.k.a. “After the Ball”)

                              “Alyosha the Pot” (1905)

                              “My Dream” (1906)

                              “There Are No Guilty People” (1909)

                              “The Young Tsar” (1894)

Hadji Murad (1912)* tr. Aylmer Maude

Plays

Plays: Complete Ed., Including the Posthumous Plays (1919) tr. Louise & Aylmer Maude     
                              The Power of Darkness (1886)

                              The First Distiller (1886)

                              Fruits of Culture (1889)

                              The Live Corpse (1900)

                              The Cause of it All (1910)

                              The Light Shines in Darkness (1890)

Selected Religious, Philosophical & Critical Works

A Confession (1879)* tr. Leo Weiner

My Religion (1884)* tr. Huntington Smith

What Shall We Do? (1886)* tr. uncredited 

The Kingdom of God is Within You (1893)* tr. Constance Garnett

What is Art? (1897)* tr. Aylmer Maude

Letter to a Hindu (1908)* tr. uncredited, Introduction by M. K. Ghandi

Journal

The Journal of Leo Tolstoy: First Volume 1895-1899 (1911) tr. Rose Strunsky

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