#140 The Lion and the Sun

Today’s story is 1540 words long and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/140.html Travis Review: This is a funny story about how some medals and awards are achieved in the world. Stepan did not necessarily earn the Lion and Sun award by doing anything noble. Far from it. He made an ass out himself to the …

#103 Drunk

Today’s story is 2359 words and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/103.html Travis Review: This story could be summed up with the words “Money can’t buy happiness.” Frolov is a wealthy malcontent surrounded by sycophants. We watch him spend a night of debauchery in a restaurant with his lawyer as he insults the servers and destroys …

#100 Enemies

Today’s 100th installment comes in at 5604 words and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/100.html Travis Review: Today’s 100th story is a dark and brutal tale that has a noir core. It is a tale of two men suffering losses and the tunnel vision it produces in each of them. In the case of the bereaving …

#099 The Beggar

Today’s story is 2132 words and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/099.html Travis Review: Today’s story is about Skvortsov, a successful lawyer, challenging a young, drunken beggar he caught in a lie the opportunity to work for money. It seems that he is trying to impart a little of the mantra “Give a man a fish …

#098 Frost

Today’s story is 2557 words and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/098.html Travis Review: As we’ve seen, Chekhov is good at creating new and interesting characters. Today has made an another unique creation, a chatty, happy-go-lucky 70 year old mayor. Typically his older men have been tired and forlorn, the exception being Terenty from A Day …

#089 Hush!

Today’s story is 1104 words long and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/089.html Travis Review: Today’s story is a great example of a man in love with the concept of being a writer, while everybody around him suffers (including himself) for his passion. This story reminded me of a combination of two previous passionate Chekhov characters …

#088 Dreams

Today’s story is 3430 words long and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/088.html Travis Review: Today’s story has a nameless tramp escorted by two peasant constables to the district town. It seems that his offense is not “remembering his name.” I can assume that strangers who wander into town are considered suspect unless they can identify …

#086 A Peculiar Man

Today’s story is 1607 words long and can be found here: http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/086.html Travis Review: Today’s story does contain a peculiar man. Steve does a great job below diagnosing Kiryakov with Asperger’s Syndrome, but like the midwife in the story, I would prefer to keep my distance from him regardless of his condition and not worry about any …

#085 In the Court

Today’s story is 2626 words and can be found here:  http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/085.html Travis Review: It today’s story, we see the sausage making of the Russian judicial system. How little the officers of the courts are engaged with the proceedings, even when life or death drama is happening. “…the men here were as accustomed to the dramas …

#083 A Trifle from Life

Today’s story is 2003 words and can be found here: http://www.chekhovshorts.com/stories/083.html Travis Review: After yesterday’s “A Tripping Tongue” and “A Trivial Incident” the day before that comes today’s “T” titled story completing a Chekov T-trifecta. Belyaev is a self-absorbed, successful man living with a woman or as he says “dragging out a long, wearisome romance.” …