Zinotchka

Written by Anton Chekhov

Narrated by Max Bollinger

"Zinotchka" is a short story by Anton Chekhov that follows a group of sportsmen discussing love and hatred during an evening in a peasant's hut. One of the men shares his personal experience of being passionately hated by a young governess named Zinotchka when he was just a child. As he recounts the story, he reveals how he stumbled upon a secret rendezvous between Zinotchka and his elder brother Sasha. The young boy, relishing in his power to expose their secret, blackmails Zinotchka, causing her great distress. However, his actions ultimately lead to her departure from their household and her eventual marriage to his brother. Despite the passage of time, the narrator reveals that Zinotchka still harbors lingering animosity towards him, highlighting the enduring nature of both love and hatred. Read in English, unabridged.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Interactive Media
• Release date: Feb 15, 2016
• ISBN: 9781911263173

Anton Chekhov

Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) was a Russian doctor, short-story writer, and playwright. Born in the port city of Taganrog, Chekhov was the third child of Pavel, a grocer and devout Christian, and Yevgeniya, a natural storyteller. His father, a violent and arrogant man, abused his wife and children and would serve as the inspiration for many of the writer’s most tyrannical and hypocritical characters. Chekhov studied at the Greek School in Taganrog, where he learned Ancient Greek. In 1876, his father’s debts forced the family to relocate to Moscow, where they lived in poverty while Anton remained in Taganrog to settle their finances and finish his studies. During this time, he worked odd jobs while reading extensively and composing his first written works. He joined his family in Moscow in 1879, pursuing a medical degree while writing short stories for entertainment and to support his parents and siblings. In 1876, after finishing his degree and contracting tuberculosis, he began writing for St. Petersburg’s Novoye Vremya, a popular paper which helped him to launch his literary career and gain financial independence. A friend and colleague of Leo Tolstoy, Maxim Gorky, and Ivan Bunin, Chekhov is remembered today for his skillful observations of everyday Russian life, his deeply psychological character studies, and his mastery of language and the rhythms of conversation.