#194 The Darling

Find today’s 4,956 word story here: http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/194.html Travis review: Olenka is a woman of empathetic obsession. She is a blank slate with neither desire or even logical thoughts until she meets a man (two husbands, one companion, and a child) from whom she can live vicariously. Chekhov writes Olenka almost a caricature. At first, the empathetic …

#173 The Student

Find today’s 1506 word story here: http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/173.html Travis review: In today’s story a young student talks with two widows, a mother and a daughter, and by discussing the apostle Peter’s three denials of Christ, the older woman cries. The student walks away with the idea that “The past is linked with the present by an …

#027 Malingerers

Today’s story is 1379 words:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/027.html Travis Review: The last sentence could have easily been the title of this short, “The deceitfulness of man.” A wealthy general’s widow runs a clinic for the poor. While her liberal heart beats true for the impoverished locals in need, she is also a victim of their flattery. Her giving soul …

#021 The Marshal’s Widow

Today’s story is a mere 1510 words:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/021.html Travis Review: This story felt like an Irish wake once the men started sneaking off to the cloak room to get a nip of booze in a teetotaler’s house. The result reminded me of The Pogues’ Body of An American, especially how song’s opening somber notes pick …