Yevgeny Onegin

THE GREATEST WORK OF MODERN RUSSIAN LITERATURE: A transcendent story of vanity and love, in a startlingly modern translation.

“What makes Onegin great is its timeless insight into the human heart: its vanities, its follies, its disasters.” — Guardian Arguably the jewel in the crown of Russia’s greatest writer, Yevgeny Onegin is Alexander Pushkin’s sublime masterpiece of love, death, dueling, rivalry, identity and the search for happiness.

The aristocratic Yevgeny Onegin has come into his inheritance, leaving the glamour of St Petersburg’s social life to take up residence at his uncle’s large country estate. Master of the nonchalant bow, the aristocratic and aloof Onegin is the very model of a social butterfly – a fickle dandy, liked by all for his quick wit and easy ways.

When the shy and passionate Tatyana becomes hopelessly infatuated with him, Onegin rejects her with brutal condescension. Swiftly moving on, he carelessly diverts himself by flirting with her sister, Olga, sowing the seeds for future disaster and heartbreak.

By turns playful, philosophical, sardonic and mournful, brimming with rich descriptions of Russian life, from drinking and dancing to crisp wintry landscapes, Yevgeny Onegin is a work of thrilling energy. This deft and vibrant translation by Anthony Briggs, acclaimed translator of Tolstoy’s War and Peace, brilliantly conveys this vitality, capturing all the supple lightness and humour, as well as the depth, of Pushkin’s luminous verse novel.