The Death of Ivan Ilyitch

Written by Leo Tolstoy

Narrated by Casey Robertson

The Death of Ivan Ilyich is the story of a high court judge who has never given the certainty of his dying much of a thought. But one day, death comes to him in the shape of abrupt illness, and to his shocked agony and surprise, he is now forced to deal with his own mortality. This novella by Tolstoy plunges us into the gloom of death but also raises us up into the light of life and spiritual transcendence: "He sought his former accustomed fear of death and did not find it. 'Where is it? What death?' There was no fear because there was no death. In place of death there was light."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Musaicum Books
• Release date: Jun 1, 2019

Leo Tolstoy

Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) was a Russian author of novels, short stories, novellas, plays, and philosophical essays. He was born into an aristocratic family and served as an officer in the Russian military during the Crimean War before embarking on a career as a writer and activist. Tolstoy’s experience in war, combined with his interpretation of the teachings of Jesus, led him to devote his life and work to the cause of pacifism. In addition to such fictional works as War and Peace (1869), Anna Karenina (1877), and The Death of Ivan Ilyich (1886), Tolstoy wrote The Kingdom of God is Within You (1893), a philosophical treatise on nonviolent resistance which had a profound impact on Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. He is regarded today not only as one of the greatest writers of all time, but as a gifted and passionate political figure and public intellectual whose work transcends Russian history and literature alike.

Reviews for The Death of Ivan Ilyitch

[James Noll · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I will have to listen to this one again. I was assigned to read this book when in high school or college but never did. So now 30 years later - as a lawyer no less - I decided to listen to it. Its a morality play for anyone in the judiciary. I suddenly have more empathy for Judges. I don't know how a high schooler, college student or even a law student could not learn something from this book. Leo Tolstoy is a master genius of the human spirit. I wonder what he would be writing today?