Best Russian Literature

For more specific lists, see:
Greatest Russian Novels of All Time
Best Russian (Soviet 1917-1991) Literature
Best Post-WWII Soviet Lit
Best Books by Russian Female Writers

All Votes Add Books To This List

101	Farewell to Matyora by Valentin Rasputin 3.75 avg rating — 561 ratings score: 923, and 12 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
102	Kolyma Tales by Varlam Shalamov 4.36 avg rating — 4,372 ratings score: 914, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
103	Morphine by Mikhail Bulgakov 4.06 avg rating — 4,980 ratings score: 911, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
104	The Gift by Vladimir Nabokov really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 3,037 ratings score: 822, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
105	Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov 4.15 avg rating — 37,986 ratings score: 809, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
106	Memories of the Future by Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky 3.94 avg rating — 983 ratings score: 794, and 10 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
107	Маленькие трагедии by Alexander Pushkin 4.33 avg rating — 2,403 ratings score: 789, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
108	Mirgorod: Four Tales by Nikolai Gogol by Nikolai Gogol 4.21 avg rating — 395 ratings score: 747, and 12 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
109	The Gentleman from San Francisco and Other Stories by Ivan Bunin 4.01 avg rating — 1,676 ratings score: 743, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
110	Гранатовый браслет by Aleksandr Ivanovich Kuprin 3.96 avg rating — 1,988 ratings score: 724, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
111	The Eternal Husband by Fyodor Dostoyevsky 3.72 avg rating — 6,502 ratings score: 678, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
112	Monday Starts On Saturday by Arkady Strugatsky 4.26 avg rating — 11,018 ratings score: 675, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
113	My Sister - Life by Boris Pasternak 4.18 avg rating — 177 ratings score: 670, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
114	Moscow 2042 by Vladimir Voinovich 3.92 avg rating — 1,266 ratings score: 665, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
115	Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk by Nikolai Leskov 3.94 avg rating — 3,257 ratings score: 648, and 10 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
116	Дом, в котором... by Mariam Petrosyan 4.18 avg rating — 4,567 ratings score: 620, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
117	On the Eve by Ivan Turgenev 3.83 avg rating — 2,759 ratings score: 602, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
118	Forever Flowing by Vasily Grossman 4.14 avg rating — 2,389 ratings score: 601, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
119	The Winter Queen (Erast Fandorin Mysteries, #1) by Boris Akunin 3.88 avg rating — 9,783 ratings score: 587, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
120	The Golovlyov Family by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin 4.04 avg rating — 2,149 ratings score: 583, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
121	The Dream Life of Sukhanov by Olga Grushin (Goodreads Author) 3.88 avg rating — 1,323 ratings score: 574, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
122	Laughter in the Dark by Vladimir Nabokov 3.97 avg rating — 11,614 ratings score: 572, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
123	My Past and Thoughts: The Memoirs of Alexander Herzen by Alexander Herzen 4.06 avg rating — 263 ratings score: 558, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
124	The Stories of Vladimir Nabokov by Vladimir Nabokov 4.30 avg rating — 6,492 ratings score: 549, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
125	The Essential Tales of Chekhov by Anton Chekhov 4.35 avg rating — 968 ratings score: 536, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
126	First Love by Ivan Turgenev 3.78 avg rating — 8,690 ratings score: 535, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
127	A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov 4.28 avg rating — 11,592 ratings score: 534, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
128	Plays by Aleksandr Ostrovsky 3.80 avg rating — 122 ratings score: 523, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
129	The Life and Extraordinary Adventures of Private Ivan Chonkin by Vladimir Voinovich 3.98 avg rating — 2,177 ratings score: 517, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
130	Omon Ra by Victor Pelevin 3.88 avg rating — 6,197 ratings score: 514, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
131	Matryona's House and Other Stories by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn 3.90 avg rating — 1,642 ratings score: 500, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
132	Great Short Works of Fyodor Dostoevsky by Fyodor Dostoyevsky 4.42 avg rating — 1,427 ratings score: 484, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
133	Noon, 22nd Century by Arkady Strugatsky 4.03 avg rating — 901 ratings score: 473, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
134	Rudin by Ivan Turgenev 3.74 avg rating — 2,350 ratings score: 467, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
135	Viy by Nikolai Gogol 4.03 avg rating — 2,938 ratings score: 466, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
136	Day of the Oprichnik by Vladimir Sorokin 3.70 avg rating — 3,853 ratings score: 462, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
137	Life, Life: Selected Poems by Arseny Tarkovsky 4.11 avg rating — 85 ratings score: 451, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
138	To Urania: Poems by Joseph Brodsky 4.34 avg rating — 295 ratings score: 439, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
139	Backbone Flute: Selected Poetry by Vladimir Mayakovsky 4.26 avg rating — 174 ratings score: 438, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
140	Selected Short Stories by Maxim Gorky 4.11 avg rating — 95 ratings score: 435, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
141	Peasants and Other Stories by Anton Chekhov 4.20 avg rating — 248 ratings score: 431, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
142	The Return and Other Stories by Andrei Platonov 4.37 avg rating — 220 ratings score: 429, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
143	Metro 2033 (Metro, #1) by Dmitry Glukhovsky (Goodreads Author) 3.99 avg rating — 35,436 ratings score: 427, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
144	The Cossacks and Other Stories by Leo Tolstoy really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 577 ratings score: 420, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
145	The Fatal Eggs by Mikhail Bulgakov 3.79 avg rating — 6,719 ratings score: 409, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
146	The Women's Decameron by Julia Voznesenskaya 3.96 avg rating — 244 ratings score: 407, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
147	The Twelve & Other Poems by Alexander Blok 3.88 avg rating — 208 ratings score: 395, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
148	Sandro of Chegem by Fazil Iskander 4.30 avg rating — 312 ratings score: 392, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
148	Death and the Penguin by Andrey Kurkov 3.81 avg rating — 8,295 ratings score: 392, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
150	The House on the Embankment by Yury Trifonov really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 404 ratings score: 390, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
151	Ice Trilogy by Vladimir Sorokin 3.58 avg rating — 708 ratings score: 387, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
152	Harvest on the Don by Mikhail Sholokhov 3.99 avg rating — 364 ratings score: 383, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
153	The Negro of Peter the Great by Alexander Pushkin 3.66 avg rating — 293 ratings score: 382, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
154	Pushkin House by Andrei Bitov 3.79 avg rating — 272 ratings score: 374, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
155	Борис Годунов by Alexander Pushkin 3.90 avg rating — 1,789 ratings score: 372, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
156	The Story of a Life by Konstantin Georgiyevich Paustovsky 4.40 avg rating — 300 ratings score: 370, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
156	Дядя Фёдор, пёс и кот by Eduard Uspensky 4.36 avg rating — 3,286 ratings score: 370, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
158	Jamilia by Chingiz Aitmatov 3.85 avg rating — 4,111 ratings score: 366, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
159	Тимур и его команда by Arkady Gaydar 3.78 avg rating — 1,126 ratings score: 363, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
160	The Red Laugh by Leonid Andreyev 4.30 avg rating — 584 ratings score: 359, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
161	Pnin by Vladimir Nabokov 3.89 avg rating — 16,954 ratings score: 356, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
162	Glory by Vladimir Nabokov 3.70 avg rating — 1,989 ratings score: 352, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
162	White Walls: Collected Stories by Tatyana Tolstaya 4.04 avg rating — 454 ratings score: 352, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
164	Sofia Petrovna by Lydia Chukovskaya 3.93 avg rating — 1,387 ratings score: 349, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
165	The Queue by Vladimir Sorokin 3.74 avg rating — 1,078 ratings score: 347, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
166	A Family Chronicle by Sergei Aksakov 3.80 avg rating — 146 ratings score: 346, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
167	Thais of Athens by Ivan Efremov 4.33 avg rating — 1,277 ratings score: 345, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
168	Duck Hunting by Aleksandr Vampilov 3.93 avg rating — 107 ratings score: 344, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
169	Happy Moscow by Andrei Platonov 3.84 avg rating — 699 ratings score: 337, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
170	Master and Man and Other Stories by Leo Tolstoy 4.02 avg rating — 574 ratings score: 333, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
171	Great Russian Short Stories by Norris Houghton 4.21 avg rating — 66 ratings score: 329, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
172	Poems by Nikolay A. Nekrasov 3.57 avg rating — 86 ratings score: 327, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
173	The Steppe and Other Stories, 1887-91 by Anton Chekhov 4.11 avg rating — 765 ratings score: 325, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
174	Heavy Sand by Anatoli Rybakov 4.43 avg rating — 412 ratings score: 323, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
175	On the Golden Porch by Tatyana Tolstaya 3.98 avg rating — 221 ratings score: 317, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
176	The Lower Depths by Maxim Gorky 3.76 avg rating — 2,582 ratings score: 309, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
177	The Forty First by Борис Лавренев 3.90 avg rating — 29 ratings score: 308, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
177	Дракон. Пьесы 1934-1943 by Evgeny Shvarts 4.49 avg rating — 281 ratings score: 308, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
179	Даниэль Штайн, переводчик by Lyudmila Ulitskaya 4.20 avg rating — 1,402 ratings score: 301, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
180	Collected Stories by Ivan Bunin 4.20 avg rating — 599 ratings score: 299, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
181	Beetle in the Anthill by Arkady Strugatsky 4.24 avg rating — 1,720 ratings score: 293, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
181	The Fierce and Beautiful World by Andrei Platonov 4.27 avg rating — 385 ratings score: 293, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
181	The Black Book and Schwambrania by Lev Kassil 4.25 avg rating — 197 ratings score: 293, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
184	Soul by Andrei Platonov 4.16 avg rating — 1,302 ratings score: 286, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
185	Poor Liza by Nikolay Mikhailovich Karamzin 3.41 avg rating — 1,944 ratings score: 283, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
185	Despair by Vladimir Nabokov 3.92 avg rating — 7,132 ratings score: 283, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
187	Повести. Рассказы. Избранные произведения by Anton Chekhov 4.51 avg rating — 109 ratings score: 280, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
188	Алмазная колесница (Erast Fandorin Mysteries, #10) by Boris Akunin 4.41 avg rating — 3,137 ratings score: 279, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
189	Classic Tales and Fables for Children by Leo Tolstoy 3.82 avg rating — 107 ratings score: 276, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
190	Summer in Baden-Baden by Leonid Tsypkin 3.77 avg rating — 839 ratings score: 274, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
191	The Yellow Arrow by Victor Pelevin 4.10 avg rating — 2,305 ratings score: 271, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
191	Voices from Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster by Svetlana Alexievich 4.44 avg rating — 25,930 ratings score: 271, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
193	The Enchanter by Vladimir Nabokov 3.63 avg rating — 2,650 ratings score: 268, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
194	Stories from a Siberian Village by Vasily Shukshin 4.21 avg rating — 141 ratings score: 264, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
195	Collected Poems in English by Joseph Brodsky 4.40 avg rating — 986 ratings score: 262, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
196	There Once Lived a Woman Who Tried to Kill Her Neighbor's Baby: Scary Fairy Tales by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya 3.63 avg rating — 3,166 ratings score: 259, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
196	A Matter оf Death аnd Life by Andrey Kurkov 3.73 avg rating — 915 ratings score: 259, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
198	Murder on the Leviathan (Erast Fandorin Mysteries, #3) by Boris Akunin 4.01 avg rating — 5,946 ratings score: 256, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
199	Статский советник (Erast Fandorin Mysteries, #6) by Boris Akunin 4.19 avg rating — 3,758 ratings score: 255, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
200	Ilf and Petrov's American Road Trip: The 1935 Travelogue of Two Soviet Writers by Ilya Ilf 4.26 avg rating — 2,002 ratings score: 250, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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486 books · 2,009 voters · list created June 26th, 2008 by Heather (votes) .

Tags: author-by-country, classic, fiction, literary-fiction, location, russian, setting

960 likes · Like

Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.

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Comments Showing 1-48 of 48 (48 new)

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message 1: by Bettie (last edited Mar 06, 2009 07:28AM) (new)

Mar 06, 2009 02:14AM

Here lies a difficult task, just how can one grade these one above another. I give the one's I have selected all joint first and would wish to re-read them all.

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message 2: by Deirdre (new)

Jul 22, 2009 04:08PM

Oops! I clicked a wrong work by mistake, Timon of Athens. I deleted it from my votes but it's still showing on the main list with zero votes. Is there any way of removing it entirely? Help!

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message 3: by Bettie (new)

Jul 23, 2009 04:51AM

It will drop to the bottom, if not entirely, within time - no worries.

:O)

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message 4: by Brianna (last edited Aug 25, 2009 02:28PM) (new)

Aug 25, 2009 02:28PM

Best list(opia) ever. Everything I haven't already read (or re-read) is going on my library list.

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message 5: by Pavel (new)

Sep 23, 2009 05:22AM

We need some votes for great russian poets of XX century, they are too underrated

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message 6: by David (new)

Oct 11, 2009 11:10AM

Lolita isn't really Russian if it was first written in English...right?

I guess it qualifies because Nabokov was Russian, but I'm still hesitant to call it "Russian".

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message 7: by Pavel (last edited Oct 12, 2009 02:06PM) (new)

Oct 12, 2009 02:05PM

David wrote: "Lolita isn't really Russian if it was first written in English...right?

I guess it qualifies because Nabokov was Russian, but I'm still hesitant to call it "Russian"."

You're right at large, David - originally it was written in English, BUT "Lolita" can be treated as "Russian" not because Nabokov was Russian, but because he, Nabokov "translated" himself the novel into Russian. In the case when a writer "transalates" his own book into his own native language it's safe to say the book was written twice in 2 languages. We read this "translation" here.(by the way "Lolita" was THE ONLY English novel of him which he "translated" into Russian himself. It shall be clear that he couldn't have any hope whatsoever at his time that this book will ever be published in his homeland)

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message 8: by Kasia (new)

Oct 12, 2009 02:15PM

Interesting...

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message 9: by [deleted user] (new)

Jul 03, 2010 09:02PM

Excellent list and am proud to have read many of these brilliant works.

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message 10: by Mystee (new)

Jul 28, 2010 08:21PM

This list has inspired me to work my way through this list of top Russian Lit...I'll be tracking my progress on my book blog. Looks like War and Peace is my first one to tackle :) Thanks for an awesome list

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message 11: by Frances Marley (new)

Aug 13, 2010 06:24AM

SUPERLATIVE

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message 12: by Capsguy (new)

Mar 08, 2011 03:12AM

There are only so many left for me to read unfortunately :(

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message 13: by umar (new)

Apr 05, 2012 09:00AM

you can rate a book on its influence on society and people.
this is how to rate books.
it always comes down to being scientific, some people enjoy this and some enjoy that you can never come to a conclusion but by setting a scale as i have mentioned above one can achieve some result as to whcih book is the best book.

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message 14: by Lisa (new)

Jul 08, 2012 04:26PM

I think War and Peace is in twice, once near the top of page 1 and then again on page 2. Different editions?

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message 15: by Lisa (new)

Jul 08, 2012 04:32PM

Lolita is in the list twice too.

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message 16: by Rahul Nath (new)

Nov 21, 2012 05:51AM

Crime and Punishment wins!! Crime and Punishment wins!! Raskolnikov is the most compelling character I have ever had the pleasure of reading.

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message 17: by Alan (new)

Jan 26, 2013 08:05AM

Lisa wrote: "Lolita is in the list twice too."

Chekhov short stories, more than twice--of course, only a small number (of a shelfload) of his short stories are translated.

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message 18: by Anna (new)

Feb 08, 2013 05:24PM

Deleted: A Clockwork Orange

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message 19: by Nermin (new)

Mar 28, 2013 07:33AM

Some of the authors in this aren't really Russian. I guess they are in this list because they wrote their books in Russian?

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message 20: by Saad (new)

Sep 06, 2013 09:41PM

Simply:
Amazing !

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message 21: by Innokis (new)

Mar 24, 2014 04:05PM

PAn Tadeusz - Polish one

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message 22: by [deleted user] (new)

Mar 28, 2014 05:09AM

Lisa wrote: "I think War and Peace is in twice, once near the top of page 1 and then again on page 2. Different editions?"

Different translations

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message 23: by Manray9 (last edited May 20, 2014 03:33PM) (new)

Apr 23, 2014 04:45PM

I am an admirer of Victor Serge, but his books on this list were written in French. In my opinion Russian literature must be written in Russian.

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message 24: by Alan (new)

Apr 24, 2014 12:28AM

I would agree, if one-fifth of War and Peace were not in French!

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message 25: by Jason (new)

May 20, 2014 12:40PM

Alan wrote: "I would agree, if one-fifth of War and Peace were not in French!"

Good point, currently reading war and peace and think it is quite strange there is so much talking in French seeing as they are at war with France.

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message 26: by Jason (new)

May 20, 2014 12:41PM

This is a great list. Gonna enjoy working through these.

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message 27: by Alan (new)

May 20, 2014 12:51PM

Jason wrote: "Alan wrote: "I would agree, if one-fifth of War and Peace were not in French!"

Good point, currently reading war and peace and think it is quite strange there is so much talking in French seeing a..."
Well, I once wrote a piece for the NYT Book Review (tho' not printed, the editor complimented--they'd published my guest Safire, linked on my website, www.habitableworlds.com --lower L): I compared Russia's independence from France--the lang of their aristocracy--with the US independence from England, the language of ours! I argued that 19C Russian and American novels have more in common--vast country, religious wanderers, individuality--than American and English (always about social position and class). You must recall that Russia depended on France for so much--their ballet (Bolshoi still tops), their language of aristocrats and government service, etc. But their lit was largely independent of France. Pushkin, closer to Byron than the Fr masters.

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message 28: by Jason (new)

May 20, 2014 01:30PM

From what I have read so far it does seem to be a class thing, something I never knew, I'm new to Russian lit. Only on my second book.

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message 29: by Karim (new)

Nov 28, 2014 09:46AM

great russian literature audiobooks pdf and epub format see more here:http://classicalnovels.blogspot.com/

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message 30: by Jason (new)

Dec 14, 2014 12:06PM

Haha, duel citizenship?

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message 31: by Paul (new)

Jan 25, 2015 06:31AM

Checked for duplicates: 3 books removed.

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message 32: by Paul (new)

Jan 25, 2015 06:54AM

Removed: #96 Absurdistan - author American, book written in English: #208 The Fixer - author American, book written in English; #251 The Freedom of Choice - author Polish/Australian, book written in English; and four novels (#242, #251, #259, #263) by Martin Cruz Smith - author American, books written in English.

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message 33: by Paul (new)

Jan 25, 2015 07:03AM

Removed four undetected duplicates.

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message 34: by Thomas (last edited Apr 29, 2015 07:14AM) (new)

Apr 29, 2015 07:14AM

A lot of non-Russian books on this list:

Vladimir Nabokov – Lolita
Vladimir Nabokov – Pnin
Vladimir Nabokov – Speak, Memory
Vladimir Nabokov – Pale Fire
Vladimir Nabokov – Ada
Vladimir Nabokov - The Real Life of Sebastian Knight
Vladimir Nabokov – Lectures on Literature
Vladimir Nabokov – Signs and Symbols
Andrei Makine – Dreams of My Russian Summers
Andrei Makine – Once Upon the River Love
Andrei Makine – The Crime of Olga Arbyelina
Andrei Makine – The Woman Who Waited
Andrei Makine – Requiem for Lost Empire
Victor Serge – Unforgiving Years
Victor Serge – The Case of Comrade Tulayev
Victor Serge – Conquered City
Joseph Brodsky – Watermark
Adam Mickiewicz – Pan Tadeusz
Jostein Gaarder – Sophie’s World
Paulo Coelho – The Alchemist
Richard Wurmbrand – Tortured for Christ
Daphne Kalotay – Russian Winter
Mikhail Naimy – The Book of Mirdad
Karl Emil Franzos – Leib Weihnachtskuchen and His Child
Alina Bronsky – Broken Glass Park

None of these books was written in Russian.

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message 35: by Manray9 (new)

Apr 29, 2015 07:22AM

Thomas wrote: "A lot of non-Russian books on this list:

Vladimir Nabokov – Lolita
Vladimir Nabokov – Pnin
Vladimir Nabokov – Speak, Memory
Vladimir Nabokov – Pale Fire
Vladimir Nabokov – Ada
Vladimir Nabokov - T..."

It's a recurrent problem with these lists. I don't know if members just can't resist the urge to add something to the list or if they're simply ignorant.

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message 36: by Monicaaa (new)

Nov 23, 2015 09:50AM

Pan Tadeusz by Adam Mickiewicz should not be on this list. He was Lithuanian/Polish. Although he was living in Poland occupied by the Russians, that does not qualify him for this list.

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message 37: by Gregory (new)

Dec 01, 2015 11:15AM

My soul has fallen into the trap of loving Russian literature or at least the translation of Russian Literature. If only I could read it in Russian but this probably will remain a wish. But there is such a heart and passion in Russian Lit, that I could only hope our American Authors can find a way to tap into the source. I think that Latin American writers have taped into the same source of passion.

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message 38: by Gregory (new)

Dec 01, 2015 11:17AM

Alan wrote: "Jason wrote: "Alan wrote: "I would agree, if one-fifth of War and Peace were not in French!"

Good point, currently reading war and peace and think it is quite strange there is so much talking in F..."

I agree with Alan's assessment. The United States and Russia were on the frontier from the center winch was more Paris than London. I came away with this since from the book "Young Pushkin."

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message 39: by Aubrey (new)

Dec 04, 2015 09:42PM

Those who think they're complementing nonfiction by calling it the 'best literature': stop.

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message 40: by Zuzi (last edited Feb 27, 2016 11:44PM) (new)

Feb 27, 2016 11:34PM

Romanul adolescentului miop by Mircea Eliade
Amintiri: Eminescu, Creanga, Caragiale, Cosbuc, Maiorescu by Ioan Slavici
Suflet românesc by Dan Puric
„Procesul” Mareșalului Ion Antonescu by Ioan Dan
Pădurea spânzuraţilor by Liviu Rebreanu

not Russsian please take it off the list

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message 41: by Alan (new)

Feb 28, 2016 03:34AM

Deirdre wrote: "Oops! I clicked a wrong work by mistake, Timon of Athens. I deleted it from my votes but it's still showing on the main list with zero votes. Is there any way of removing it entirely? Help!"

Dunno, but maybe you can rename: Timon of Aleksandrov...

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message 42: by Xinyu (last edited Aug 08, 2016 05:35AM) (new)

Aug 08, 2016 05:35AM

My goal would be to read most of the first 100 books on the list

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message 43: by Quinn (new)

Dec 02, 2016 06:39PM

Pavel wrote: "We need some votes for great russian poets of XX century, they are too underrated"

suggestions?

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message 44: by Nente (new)

Apr 10, 2017 06:27AM

Added to the list description some links to more specific lists of Russian literature. I hope it's all right with you Heather.

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message 45: by Privada (last edited Feb 09, 2018 07:10PM) (new)

Feb 09, 2018 06:38PM

Added the Nobel prize winning author, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn's powerful book, '200 Years Together'. It was only very recently translated. Some are saying that it has been suppressed since he wrote it, and I have to somewhat have to agree. It takes a serious look into the relationship between the Russians and the Jews. A MUST read for anyone that loves Russian history, and that is told as honestly as his epic 'The Gulag Archipelagos'. Equally as brilliant in every respect.

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message 46: by Agnieszka (new)

May 08, 2018 07:48AM

Richard Wurmbrand: Tortured for Christ according to his bio information he's Romanian though he studied for less than one year in Russia and Romania was occupied several year by Russia.
At the end of the bio is said '...2006, he came fifth among the greatest Romanians...'

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message 47: by Agnieszka (last edited May 08, 2018 07:50AM) (new)

May 08, 2018 07:50AM

Monicaaa wrote: "Pan Tadeusz by Adam Mickiewicz should not be on this list. He was Lithuanian/Polish. Although he was living in Poland occupied by the Russians, that does not qualify him for this list."

Since Pan Tadeusz is one of the most important Polish works and part of the Polish school education I agree.

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message 48: by Zuzi (new)

May 09, 2018 12:20AM

Agnieszka wrote: "Richard Wurmbrand: Tortured for Christ according to his bio information he's Romanian though he studied for less than one year in Russia and Romania was occupied several..."

i`m sorry the way you are expressing yourself is very confusing, he is Romanian, he was born in Romania so he should not be on this list it does not matter where he studied or what occupation the country was under

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