The Friend of the Family

'A magnificent comic novel' TLS

An exuberant farce from a treasure of world literature.

At the country estate of kindly Colonel Rostanev, parasitic houseguest Foma Opiskin has brought everyone under his sway. Now Opiskin plans to marry off his host to a wealthy widow. Will the Colonel give way to Opiskin's bullying and sacrifice the love of his life, Nastasya? Or will he finally resist the petty tyrant's demands?

Farcical and effervescent with absurdity, this short novel is a sparkling example of Dostoyevsky's comic side - and a microcosmic portrait of Russia on the verge of upheaval and transformation.

Part of the Pushkin Press Classics series: timeless storytelling by icons of literature, hand-picked from around the globe.

Translated by Ignat Avsey.

Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) trained as an engineer and began his literary career with translations.

As punishment for engaging in pro­gressive political discussion, he was subjected to a mock execution and sent into exile in Siberia in his twenties. Subsequently he worked exclu­sively as a writer, touring Europe and publishing novels and journalism. Addicted to gambling, he was often near starvation.

His second, very happy marriage to typist Anna Snitkina helped to stabilize his manner of living, and with her practical assistance he went on to write several masterpieces of psychological and existential fiction. Novels such as Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, The Brothers Karamazov and Notes from Underground have earned him a lasting reputation as one of the dominant figures of world literature.

Ignat Avsey (1938-2013) was born in Latvia to Russian parents, who relocated the family to Britain after the Second World War. He taught Russian language and literature at the University of Westminster.

He translated several other works by Dostoyevsky, including The Karamazov Brothers and The Idiot, as well as Alexander Lernet-Holenia's novel I Was Jack Mortimer, also published by Pushkin Press.