Russia. A beautiful country estate. The mid-nineteenth century. A handsome new tutor brings reckless, romantic desire to an eccentric household. Over three days one summer the young and the old will learn lessons in love: first love and forbidden love, maternal love and platonic love, ridiculous love and last love. The love left unsaid and the love which must out. Ivan Turgenev's passionate, moving comedy, A Month in the Country, has been a source of inspiration for films, a ballet and the plays of Chekhov. Patrick Marber's Three Days in the Country premiered at the National Theatre, London, in July 2015 in association with Sonia Friedman Productions.

A Sportsman's Sketches was a collection of short stories written by Ivan Turgenev in 1852. Known also as Sketches from a Hunter's Album or The Hunting Sketches, the stories were Turgenev's first major piece of writing and brought him instant recognition.

Based on his own observations riding around his family's estate the stories explore the difficult lives of the peasants and the Russian system of serfdom. This system came into effect during the 11th century and required the dependency of the peasants on the state. Peasants' mobility was severely restricted and it was made illegal for them to run away from the estates where they worked - they belonged, in essence, to the landowners who could move them to another estate under another landowner while retaining the serf's personal property and family.

While there were many rebellions against serfdom it was only in 1861 that it was finally abolished and all serfs were freed by the Tsar, Alexander II. Turgenev's A Sportsman's Sketches influenced the Tsar's decision to abolish the system of serfdom in Russia.

Volume One includes:

Khor and Kalinych

Yermolay and the Miller's Wife

Raspberry Water

The District Doctor

My Neighbor Radilov

Farmer Ovsyanikov

Lgov

Bezhin Lea

Kasyan from the Beautiful Lands

Bailiff

The Office

Loner

Two Landowners

Lebedyan

A Sportsman's Sketches was a collection of short stories written by Ivan Turgenev in 1852. As Turgenev's first major piece of writing they brought him instant recognition.

Based on his own observations riding around his family's estate the stories explore the difficult lives of the peasants and the Russian system of serfdom. This system came into effect during the 11th century and required the dependency of the peasants on the state. Peasants' mobility was severely restricted and it was made illegal for them to run away from the estates where they worked - they belonged, in essence, to the landowners who could move them to another estate under another landowner while retaining the serf's personal property and family.

While there were many rebellions against serfdom it was only in 1861 that it was finally abolished and all serfs were freed by the Tsar, Alexander II. Turgenev's A Sportsman's Sketches influenced the Tsar's decision to abolish the system of serfdom in Russia.

Volume Two includes:

Tatyana Borisovna and her Nephew

Death

The Singers

Pyotr Petrovich Karataev

The Tryst

The Hamlet of the Shchigrovsky District

Chertopkhanov and Nedopyuskin

The End of Chertopkhanov

Living Relic

The Rattling of Wheels

The Forest and the Steppe

Young Muscovite bachelor Yakov Aratov lives in contented solitude, until the arrival in town of the dazzling actress Clara Militch:

"'She was all fire, all passion, and all contradiction; revengeful and kind; magnanimous and vindictive; she believed in fate - and did not believe in God.'"

Her beauty entrances him, beyond her tragic death; and soon, for the formerly level-headed rationalist Aratov, dreams, fever and the spirit world blend and merge together. These tales involve Turgenev's enthusiasm for spirituality, ghosts and premonitions, usually suppressed in his works but an intriguing counterpoint to the powerful naturalism of which he was master.

This volume contains Clara Militch," "Phantoms," "The Song of Triumphant Love," "The Dream and Turgenev's marvellously realized Poems in Prose, which conclude with his famous avowal:

"'In days of doubt, in days of dreary musings on our country's fate, thou alone art my stay and support, mighty, true, free Russian speech But for thee, how not fall into despair, seeing all that is done at home? But who can think that such a tongue is not the gift of a great people '"

Constance Garnett's 1897 translation succeeds in capturing the subtleties and delicacy of Turgenev's own poetic prose.

"'That night I went home to my lodgings in a state of perfect ecstasy ... I felt supremely happy, and was already making all sorts of plans in my head. If someone had whispered in my ear then: "You're raving, my dear chap That's not a bit what's in store for you. What's in store for you is to die all alone, in a wretched little cottage, amid the insufferable grumbling of an old hag who will await your death with impatience to sell your boots for a few coppers ... "'"

Turgenev's hopeless protagonist, at the end of his life, can only truthfully define himself as 'superfluous, ' and relates the tale of the failed romance that confirmed him in that unfortunate opinion. Turgenev's virtuosic account of a man thoroughly undermined by himself, tormented by jealousy and love, but who is, ultimately, nothing more than superfluous.

This volume of five tales also includes" "A Tour in the Forest," "Yakov Pasinkov," "Andrei Kolosov" "and" "A Correspondence," " in Constance Garnett's classic 1899 translation.

Misha Poltyev, a 'desperate character, ' squanders his inheritance, senselessly turns to drink, and lives among the beggars of the highway. Eventually, he returns to his family estate and the graveyard where his parents lie:

"'I want to dig myself a grave ... and to lie here for time everlasting. There's only this spot left for me in the world. Get a spade Oh God Everywhere nothing but injustice, and oppression, and evil-doing ... Everything must go to ruin then, and me too ' "

""

These stories demonstrate Turgenev's matchless skill for portraying elemental aspects of Russian life: the melancholic, the nostalgic, and the darkly comic.

Six tales written by Turgenev between 1847 and 1881, in Constance Garnett's classic 1899 translation: A Desperate Character," "A Strange Story," "Punin and Baburin," "Old Portraits," "The Brigadier" "and Pyetushkov. With an introduction by Edward Garnett.

Martin Petrovitch, believing he has dreamed of his own impending death, transfers ownership of his estate to his two daughters. Turgenev's short story version of Shakespeare's King Lear, follows his protagonist from that fatalistic submission to the cataclysm of cruelty, betrayal and violence that follows.

Three tales written by Turgenev in Constance Garnett's classic 1898 translation: A Lear of the Steppes," "Faust and" "Acia." "With an introduction by Edward Garnett.

A difficult and uncompromising short tale by the Russian master Turgenev, and four additional tales. Includes The Duellist, an early (1846) study of contrasting characters which clearly demonstrates his movement away from the romantic and melodramatic tradition in Russian literature, and towards his unerringly realistic portraiture of individual lives, a skill that is perhaps most perfectly expressed in his short works. Five short tales by Turgenev: The Jew, An Unhappy Girl, The Duellist, Three Portraits and Enough, in Constance Garnett's classic 1900 translation.

The Torrents of Spring and Other Stories was written when Turgenev was in his fifties and is considered to be partly autobiographical.

Also known as Spring Torrents, The Torrents of Spring focuses on the main protagonist Dimitry Sanin, a young Russian landowner who on his travels to Germany meets and falls in love with Gemma, an Italian living in Frankfurt. After winning her heart Sanin decides to sell off his estate in Russia and move to Frankfurt to be close to her. However, once back in Russia and away from his fiancee he succumbs to the charms of a sophisticated older woman, Maria Nikolaevna. He breaks off his engagement with Gemma and embarks on an affair with Maria Nikolaevna, knowing that he doesn't truly love her. Years later a successful but lonely man Sanin can't forget Gemma, the love of his life, and is tortured by the thought of what might have been had he not abandoned her. Returning to Frankfurt he searches for Gemma in the hope that she will forgive him.

An exploration of the joy and disappointment of first love, of betrayal, redemption and forgiveness The Torrents of Spring is classic Turgenev.

Considered to be among the world's greatest masters of fiction Turgenev's works explored the social issues that affected Russians during the nineteenth century, most notably the peasantry and the intelligentsia. Part of the charm of his novels and stories is his sense of place and his sympathy with the rural landscapes.

The works of Ivan Turgenev that are now available on the Faber Finds list are as much a celebration of a classic Russian novelist and short-story writer as they are of the translator Constance Garnett. During her lifetime Garnett translated around 70 volumes of Russian literature that included works by Dostoevsky, Tolstoy and Chekhov as well as Turgenev.

Referred to by Henry James as 'the first novelist of his time' Ivan Turgenev's works focus on class, love and suffering. Knock, Knock, Knock and Other Stories with its themes of the supernatural was, therefore, something of a departure for a writer who was well-known for his more humanitarian and liberal views. However, Turgenev uses these supernatural elements as a vehicle for exploring the irrationalities of the human psyche and he leaves the rational explanations for apparently supernatural events ambiguous - as Avrahm Yarmolinsky writes in his biography of Turgenev perhaps 'there are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamed of in positivist philosophy'. Knock, Knock, Knock and Other Stories includes Knock, Knock, Knock, The Inn, Lieutenant Yergunov's Story, The Dog and The Watch. 'Turning from side to side I stretched out my hands ... My finger hit one of the beams of the wall. It emitted a faint but resounding, and as it were, prolonged note ... I must have struck a hollow place. I tapped again ... this time on purpose. The same sound was repeated. I knocked again ...' From Knock, Knock, Knock (1871)

Translated by Constance Garnett Three Plays" "by Turgenev includes A Month in the Country, " "A Provincial Lady and" "A Poor Gentleman.

Turgenev wrote" "A Month in the Country in France between 1848 and 1850. Published in 1855 and first staged in 1872 the plot revolves around Natalya Petrovna, the 29-year-old wife of older landowner Arkadi Islaev. Set in Islaev's country estate in the 1840s the play pivots around the character of Natalya and her pursuit of attention, first from Mikhailo Rakitin and then with handsome young Aleksei Belyaev, her son's tutor. Problems arise when Vera, her 17-year-old foster daughter, also falls in love with Aleksei. Exploring themes of love, jealousy, rivalry and ennui A Month in the Country is just one example of Turgenev's brilliance.

A Provincial Lady, written in 1851, was a comedy in one act. As Richard Freeborn wrote in 1994, 'Turgenev's comedy has often been called Chekhovian, even though it preceded Chekhov's mature work by more than forty years'.

A Poor Gentleman (1840s) was a two-act play whose themes were compared to the works of Nikolai Gogol, a writer that Turgenev greatly admired and was influenced by. It was for writing an obituary for Gogol that Turgenev found himself arrested and imprisoned for a month, having managed to publish the obituary despite its being banned by the censor.

First translated by Constance Garnett in 1895 Fathers and Children was published in 1862 in The Russian Messenger and provoked immediate controversy for its portrayal of the rise of the nihilist movement. With its themes of love and redemption Fathers and Children (or Fathers and Sons as it was also known) was written as a response to the liberal movement that arose in Russia during the 1860s. The novel explores the growing disharmony between the younger generation and the older generation in Russia and the 'children's' rejection of the existing values and authority of their 'father's'. The main protagonist Yevgeny Bazarov is training to be a doctor and is mentor to Arkady Kirsanov. Arkady's brother Pavel and his father Nikolai represent the past while Arkady, as the sentimentalist, represents the present. Bazarov, on the other hand, represents the changing society as he rejects the old system entirely. However, Bazarov finds it hard to reconcile his views when he falls in love with Anna Sergeyvna Odintsov, a wealthy widow. Widely regarded as Turgenev's most powerful work and the first modern novel in Russian Literature, Fathers and Children helped to establish Turgenev's name in the West.

Virgin Soil, written in 1877 and translated into English in 1896, was Ivan Turgenev's last novel and an appropriate end to his career as a novelist. Its analysis of the future of Russia was prescient as it sketches out the historical justification of the Nihilist movement - why it was necessary - and then prophesises its failure. The book caused Turgenev's final disgrace with the Government and, like many other Russian writers before and after him, he was exiled, although this took place after his death rather than during his lifetime. Denied a public funeral and honours the Government suppressed any public comments on his works and his influence on Russian literature.

As Edward Garnett writes in his introduction to Virgin Soil in 1896 'to examine the characters of the novel is to see how perfectly representative they are of Russian political life'. Turgenev's genius was the ability to take a simple story line and create an intricate and in-depth look at life in Russia as seen through the eyes of ordinary Russians.

Virgin Soil, written in 1877 and translated into English in 1896, was Ivan Turgenev's last novel and an appropriate end to his career as a novelist. Its analysis of the future of Russia was prescient as it sketches out the historical justification of the Nihilist movement - why it was necessary - and then prophesises its failure. The book caused Turgenev's final disgrace with the Government and, like many other Russian writers before and after him, he was exiled, although this took place after his death rather than during his lifetime. Denied a public funeral and honours the Government suppressed any public comments on his works and his influence on Russian literature.

As Edward Garnett writes in his introduction to Virgin Soil in 1896 'to examine the characters of the novel is to see how perfectly representative they are of Russian political life'. Turgenev's genius was the ability to take a simple story line and create an intricate and in-depth look at life in Russia as seen through the eyes of ordinary Russians.

On the Eve is set at the beginning of the Crimean War and probes the friendships and loves of Elena, a young Russian woman, and the men in her life. First published in 1859 and translated into English in 1895 On the Eve is an exquisite novel that delves into the life of a young woman as well as being a penetrating diagnosis of Russia in the 1850s.

Vying for Elena's affections are Shubin, an artist, and Bersenyev, a student, but into their midst comes Insarov, a friend of Bersenyev's from Bulgaria, who is passionate about the freedom of his country. It is the strong and committed Insarov that Elena falls in love with but Elena's parents are unimpressed with the Bulgarian and want her to marry a more suitable Russian man that they have chosen for her. Elena and Insarov secretly marry but with a dawning consciousness and sense of foreboding the reader remembers that this is on the eve of the Crimean War - what future will the lovers have once war breaks out?

Smoke was published in 1867 and translated into English in 1896. It was written when Turgenev was based in Baden, amongst the resorts that were favoured by many Russians. The most cosmopolitan of all Turgenev's works Smoke sketches the intricacies of the aristocratic and Young Russia parties at a time when Russia was changing from the philosophical Nihilism of the 1860s to the more politically active Nihilism of the 1870s. An attack on all political parties and on the Russian nature of analysing everything but doing nothing, Smoke's success was immediate and great.

Despite the pervasive politics in the book the two central characters, Litvinov and Irina, are not political figures. Litvinov is gentle, sympathetic and intelligent while Irina is one of the best examples of Turgenev's creation of woman. A mixture of irresistibility and innocence, will she manage to distract Litvinov from Tatyana, his fiancee?

Smoke was described by Edward Garnett in 1896 as 'the finest example in literature of a subjective psychological study of passion ... and] a classic for all time'.

A sequel to Rudin, A House of Gentlefolk was originally published in 1858 and was translated from the Russian by Constance Garnett in 1894. A quintessential Turgenev novel about Russian society, idealism, innocence and disillusionment it is set amidst the green fields owned by bourgeois Russians. The novel pivots around the character of Lisa, a smart and accomplished young woman who represents the traditional, dutiful, innocent and modest Russian girlhood from that era. Lavretsky, the hero, is a man of action and a man of culture. He, like Lisa, is a democratic Russian and so it is almost inevitable that he and Lisa fall in love. Their contentment is short-lived, however, as a woman from Lavretsky's past enters their lives and threatens to ruin their happiness forever. Although a melancholy story the novel's overall tone remains one of hope and it is easy to see how A House of Gentlefolk became the favourite Turgenev novel for English-speaking readers.

The first of Turgenev's social novels, Rudin was first translated by Constance Garnett into English in 1894.

The main protagonist Dmitri Rudin is a representative of men of that time, being knowledgeable and enthusiastic about new ideas and the search for truth. As S. Stepniak states in his introduction to the text in 1894 Rudin's 'enthusiasm is contagious because it is sincere, and his eloquence is convincing because devotion to his ideals is an absorbing passion with him. He would die for them, and, what is more rare, he would not swerve a hair's-breadth from them for any worldly advantage, or for fear of any hardship'. Despite this Rudin's enthusiasms and attachments lack warmth and compassion. He views the world and its people through the books he has studied and at the first test to his strength of purpose he fails.

Dmitri Rudin remains therefore a character full of contradictions but it is these contradictions that make him real and one of Turgenev's greatest achievements.

This collection brings together six of Turgenev's best-known `long' short stories, in which he turns his skills of psychological observation and black comedy to subjects as diverse as the tyranny of serfdom, love, and revenge on the Russian steppes. These stories all display the elegance and clarity of Turgenev's finest writing. Richard Freeborn was until recently Professor of Russian at the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, London. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

Arkady returns to his Russian provincial home after graduation, taking with him his friend Bazarov and there ensues a clash between generations and points of view.

Bazarov, the first in a literary line of angry young men, is a nihilist who represents the new democratic intelligentsia of Russia in the 1860s. His 'nihilism' is simply a rejection of whatever cannot be established scientifically - everything else is 'romantic rubbish' he declares. Arkady's uncle Pavel, however, is an aristocrat who clings to the old values, including a love of poetry and nature, while Arkady himself is a moderate - a liberal gentleman.

When Fathers and Sons was first published, it was severely criticized by the left who felt it was a harsh satire on them, and the right who stated that it was too conciliatory. Turgenev, however, struggled to emphasize the importance of humanity and universal values. Fathers and Sons was his finest novel, the peak of his artistry and of his psychological insight.

Introduction by Ivan Turgenev; Translation by charles and Natasha Hepburn

Turgenev's masterpiece about the conflict between generations is as fresh, outspoken, and exciting today as it was in when it was first published in 1862. The controversial portrait of Bazarov, the energetic, cynical, and self-assured `nihilist' who repudiates the romanticism of his elders, shook Russian society. Indeed the image of humanity liberated by science from age-old conformities and prejudices is one that can threaten establishments of any political or religious persuasion, and is especially potent in the modern era. This new translation, specially commissioned for the World's Classics, is the first to draw on Turgenev's working manuscript, which only came to light in 1988. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.