The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories

What It's About

This is the twelfth volume of Constance Garnett's translation of Chekhov's tales, gathering twenty-five short stories. Many of them centre on children and animals — a fat, solemn boy eavesdropping in a kitchen, an exhausted young nursemaid, a dog lost in the streets of Moscow — while others turn to peasants, students, and small tradesmen going about ordinary Russian life. There is no single continuous narrative connecting the stories; each is a self-contained sketch.

Key Concepts

The stories are less concerned with plot than with mood and observation, often reading as vivid slices of life rather than stories with clear beginnings and endings. Recurring throughout is Chekhov's sympathy for the downtrodden and overlooked, along with his characteristic mixture of gentle humour, irony, and an underlying sadness that rarely tips into sentimentality.

About the Author

Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) was a Russian physician and writer, born in Taganrog to a family of modest means. He practised medicine throughout much of his literary career, which came to be defined by his short stories and plays. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest short story writers in world literature, admired for his understated, realistic style and his acute sense of human character.

About This Edition

This is a 1922 translation by Constance Garnett.