#066 Panic Fears

Find today’s 2281 word story here: http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/066.html Travis Review: In today’s story, a man tells us of the three instances in his life that freaked him out. The first experience is visual. He gets the heebee-jeebies when seeing a twinkling light “like that of a smoldering lamp, at one moment dying down, at another flickering up” …

#065 At a Summer Villa

Today’s story is 1819 words and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/065.html Travis Review: Today’s story reminds me of Chekhov’s early writings between 1882-85 when many of the stories ended with a punch line. In this case, a love letter from a secret admirer is sent to Pavel Ivanitch. The man with “eight years of married …

#064 A Day In The Country

Find today’s 2387 word story here. http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/064.html Travis Review: Today’s story could be read to young children before bedtime or in an elementary school class. It contains many classic elements of children’s literature including a quasi-dramatic rescue, a wise elderly/grandfatherly character with a kind heart, an orphan girl and boy dynamic (friendship, loyalty, physical warmth), …

#063 A Privy Councillor

Today’s story is relatively long at 6971 words:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/063.html Travis Review: Today’s story is told from a man looking back at his childhood when an uncle came to visit his family for a summer. His uncle is no ordinary man, but a privy councillor with a general rank, putting him in the top class of Russian …

#062 A Happy Man

Find today’s 1845 word story here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/062.html Travis Review Today’s story made me smile. Like yesterday’s “A Gentleman Friend,” we are watching a foolish, fun-loving person. But unlike the calculative and shallow Vanda, I like Ivan Alexyevitch, as his mistake seems honest and he has several friends (gentlemen, I assume) who willingly stand up for the man. Chekhov …

#061 A Gentleman Friend

Today’s story is 1314 words and is available here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/061.html Travis Review: Today’s story makes we think of a penniless Paris Hilton or Kim Kardashian. Entitled and focused on the vanity of appearance over subsistence, Vanda ebbs and flows between confidence and humiliation. The world revolves around her as she feels that “the very horses and …

#060 Strong Impressions

Find today’s 1995 word story here: http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/060.html Travis Review Chekhov uses an unusual method to tell the story of a young man being emotionally manipulated by lawyer. Similar to Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” or Haruki Murakami’s short story “The Seventh Man,” a group of men are assembled and begin to tell each other personal stories, …

#059 Ladies

Today’s story is 1349 words and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/059.html Travis Review: It is interesting that Chekhov went with the title, “Ladies”, instead of something like “Backdoor Politics” or “Sneak” as job seeker and strategist Polzuhin is called. Fyodor Petrovitch, the director of elementary schools, has a job opening that will save a family …

#058 Easter Eve

See today’s 3452 word Easter story at http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/058.html Travis Review What excellent timing for this review to fall on Easter weekend. It was purely by chance. This first person account of a river crossing in order to attend Easter festivities is full of atmosphere that seems more creepy than celebratory. I’m not sure if Chekhov intended …

#057 Love

Find today’s 2522 word story here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/057.html Travis Review: In this story, Chekhov writes a great character study of self-delusion. A hypersensitive, love drunk man of letters with a booming ego gives a first person account of his life from the ecstasy of writing a love letter to the present, his wedding night. It is …