Out of the initial act of counterfeiting a ruble note grows a series of evil deeds, in this, Tolstoy's last short novel. His theme is the consequences of every human action, for both good and ill: our responsibilities run deep. The escalation of evil can be stopped only by one who humbly absorbs it, without passing it on.

Winter Notes on Summer Impressions ( ? ) is an early book-length essay by Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky which he composed while traveling in western Europe. Many commentators believe that in the themes it explores, the essay anticipates his later work Notes from the Underground.
In June 1862, Dostoevsky left Petersburg on his first excursion to Western Europe. Ostensibly making the trip to consult Western specialists about his epilepsy, he also wished to see firsthand the source of the Western ideas he believed were corrupting Russia. Over the course of his journey he...