A Happy Man

Written by Anton Chekhov

Narrated by Belinda Hillman

"A Happy Man" is a very funny and satiric story that tells us that happiness is easy and everything is in our hands.
The action happens in the passenger train. One man tries to find his carriage, opening doors and saying "No, wrong again!" every time he misses. But suddenly he hears his name "Ivan Alexyevitch! What brings you here? Is it you?" It was his good mate Pyotr Petrovitch. They start chatting and Pyotr Petrovitch finds out that Ivan Alexyevitch has been married that day and he is coming straight away after the wedding. He describes how happy he is, while his listeners are laughing because Ivan is drunk for a bit and acts really funny. Suddenly he recognizes that he missed not only a carriage, but the train itself! And he moves to Moscow, while his young wife moves to Saint-Petersburg. His happiness disappears and he needs to decide what to do next.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Strelbytskyy Multimedia Publishing
• Release date: Mar 14, 2024

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.