Notes from Underground: A Norton Critical Edition

I don't think anything more needs to be said about Notes from Underground itself. It's the first true masterpiece in a run of incredible achievements from the greatest of all novelists. So this is more about the extras in the Norton Critical Edition. I got this for what must be around my fifth re-reading of this book as part of a personal project to read/re-read everything Dostoevsky wrote in order accompanied by the terrrific five-volume Dostoevsky biography by Joseph Frank. This edition is actually majority background and analysis -- around 90 pages is Notes from Underground and 160 pages is background works, Dostoevsky's letters, subsequent works inspired by it, and selections from a hundred years of analysis. The Norton Edition is expensive, but I found the added materials more than worth it (the longest of which is actually a chapter from Frank's book, which I recommendend to anyone interested in Dostoevsky for an even more thorough background). It was also funny and useful to read actual selections from What Is to Be Done?, which was the highly influential radical book Dostoevsy was in large part responding to in Notes from Underground. It is just so atrociously ridiculous that it gives you new appreciation of the lack of connection to reality of those supposdly hard-headed realist 'Demons' Dosteovsky was arguing against through much of his post-prison writing. I had read Winter Notes just before re-reading Notes, but if you haven't then the selections from that will also be especially useful background. Frank called that essay a sort of "rough draft" of Notes. Explanatory footnotes from the editor/translator were useful and thorough, and while I don't speak Russian and so can't speak directly to the translation, it reads very well, and a detailed discusssion of the difficulties of translating the famous first three lines shows just how carefully Michael Katz approached the task of balancing literal meaning with readability.

“Notes from Underground: A Norton Critical Edition” is a must-have for Dostoevsky enthusiasts. This edition includes the classic text along with critical essays and editor’s notes that deepen understanding. It’s an indispensable resource for readers, scholars, and students alike, offering valuable insights into the novel’s themes and historical context.

Fantastic novel with fantastic accompanying material. Just the letters and selected writings of Dostoevsky are worth the price of admission.

A lot of people feel intimidated by the work of Dostoevsky, but I am here to tell you that you can definitely get through his work! He was an excellent writer and a philosophical thinker. Love his work and the themes within.

This is a great portrait of a strange guy, but please don't base your whole idea of who Dostoyevsky is on this book. This is not representative of his masterpieces. p.s. There is some great bonus stuff in the Norton Critical Edition, including a parody essay by Woody Allen.

While I cannot speak to the accuracy of the translation, the prose is clear and readable. The supplementary essays, especially the Frank entry towards the end, are helpful for understanding the work. This is a great edition for students or those studying Dostoevsky.

Professor Katz's translation of this hilarious and disturbing masterpiece is one of the greatest books I have ever read. There is not much more to be written, other than to underscore the fact that the extra money spent on this translation was a worthwhile investment, and I am only sorry that Dostoyevsky did not chose to lengthen this unforgettable novella.

I haven't started this yet as I am busy reading other Dostoevsky's works. I have read Notes from Underground and I purchased this to read a different translation and do a bit more in depth study. I browsed the contents and I am very pleased with the publications that are included; I am sure they will be very helpful for gaining a better understanding about this great novel by the greatest writer that ever lived. Plus by reading Joseph Frank's "Dostoevsky: A Writer in His Time", it will give a greater insight to Notes from Underground.

Exceptional edition I just started, nothing to say on the quality of the work and translation. But have to give this edition such a bad note, as in the very first pages, in the translation note before the story even starts, the critical plot of the end of the story is completely spoiled. No warnings, no anything. Will still read, but this was a great disappointment, and feels like I've been stripped of the experience of this novel.

One of the great works of 19th century prose; valuable extra material, including Chernyshevsky's What is to be Done.

The text is very small, unreadable in my view. Why print a book with such small text size