A Life in Letters

The life story of a Russian master as he told it to others 

From the teenager in provincial Russia in 1875 to his premature death in Germany in 1904, Chekhov wrote over 4,500 letters to a range of correspondents, including family and friends, his publisher and fellow writers - not to mention actresses. These letters tell the story of Chekhov's life as a man and a writer and he emerges from them as a tough, generous, life-enhancing, and enigmatic character.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) was a Russian physician and writer of short stories and plays, including the masterpieces: 'Uncle Vanya', 'The Seagull', and 'The Cherry Orchard'.

Rosamund Bartlett is the author of Shostakovich in Context (OUP, 2000) and Wagner and Russia (CUP, 1995). She is currently working on a biography of Anton Chekhov that will be published by Simon & Schuster.

Anthony Phillips is the translator of the letters between Dmitry Shostakovich and Isaak Gilkman that were published as Story of a Friendship (Faber, 2001/ Cornell UP, 2001).