The Brothers Karamazov

By: Fyodor Dostoevsky, Constance Garnett - translator

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 19 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

The Brothers Karamazov is Dostoevsky's crowning life work and stands among the best novels in world literature.

The book probes the possible roles of four brothers in the unresolved murder of their father, Fyodor Karamazov. At the same time, it carefully explores the personalities and inclinations of the brothers themselves. Their psyches together represent the full spectrum of human nature, the continuum of faith and doubt.

Ultimately, this novel seeks to understand the real meaning of faith and existence and includes much beneficial philosophical and spiritual discussion that moves the reader towards faith. An incredibly enjoyable and edifying story!

Public Domain (P)2008 christianaudio.com

Fantastic story

I can’t even comprehend the depth of human understanding this required. Incredible work. Definitely a level of storytelling from a lost era. If you have the time, a terrific journey.

Read the Cliff Notes

I have wanted to read this book for so long, and so jumped at the chance to hear it so I would stop procrastinating. It sort of went right over my head, though. To me, the story line was a little dissatisfying and confusing. I had a hard time understanding why this book is regarded so highly.

I think I will read the Cliff Notes and perhaps some scholarly interpretation, and then try listening to it again.

Attention!

Pay attention. A lot of spiritual truths in this book of spiritual warfare. We are all wicked! Like so many, I had to pay close attention to the many Russian names. We are all more or less Demetre at times, Alyosha some other times, torn like Ivan, scoundrels like their father. And many of us, though "innocent of blood" still carry murder in our hearts. Pray God is merciful! This book is worthy of your read or listen.

Really enjoyed this

I have tried to read this book at least 3 times and could never get past the first few chapters. I am ecstatic that I found this recording. I finally know who murdered Fyodor Karamazov!

Even Abridged, it's a long book..

This book is deep. There is a lot of good stuff in it if you can stick with it. I found myself having to skip back because I missed something. I'm glad I got the Abridged version...

Outstanding

This is easily the best version of the book I've tried. It is crisp, clear, focused and fast. By fast, I mean that it has narrative drive and speed, and never loses your interest. At 20 hours, it is the ideal length. In a book that needed surgery, the guy knew exactly where to cut. Not only is it abridged, however, it has been revised. The best thing he did was to dispense with the Russian patronymic. For example, he calls Ivan "Ivan," not "Ivan Fydorovich," which is an earful as well as a mouthful. Without sacrificing richness or depth--without sacrificing what makes Dostoevsky great--it reads like a contemporary novel in English, not a big, shaggy bear of a novel from the 19th century. I wish he'd do the same for "War and Peace."

Just Wonderful

One of my favorite novels read beautifully by Simon Vance. It comes so much more alive and memorable when read by Simon Vance that each scene is written indelibly on your soul that it can be brought up in memory whenever you need it to make you a better person in moments of crisis and we all can toss a few bread crumbs for the Sparrows.

Tears at the stone

2nd time I listened. The subplot of the children meant the most to me. I lost a friend I loved and it hit home.

A masterfull book and a masterful performance

My take-away is that Dostoevski is writing to teach us, through his story and his characters, how one is to live life. He shows that, no matter how terrible and difficult life may be, approached rightly, and in the way that he details, it will be wonderfully rewarding. Do you doubt it? This book is for you. Do you believe it? This book is for you too. Although seemingly written with a younger audience especially in mind – younger meaning ages 10 through 30 – everyone who hears will profit.

An exploration of faith and humanity

A thoughtful, deep, engaging exploration of the human condition. Even abridged, it feels long, launching into seemingly endless reverie about the role of the church or the reason evil exists in the world. But by the time I got to the end of this book, I was profoundly moved. This is a work of art. If you have the fortitude to make it through this whole piece, there is a lot of powerful insight here. Also, for a text that is mostly pretty ponderous and wordy, the last third of it has a fair amount of action and I found myself surprised at how excited I was getting. The court scene at the end is absolute literary genius. I'll be honest. I started this book thinking it would be too boring to get through. By the end, I was fighting back tears. An unforgettable story, brilliantly narrated. I need to buy the paper copy because there are some quotes I need to highlight and put up on my wall.