Let’s meet the brothers: Dmitri- the eldest, impulsive, strong, uneducated, driven by desires

Ivan- the middle, the intellectual, preoccupied, gloomy atheist

Alyosha- the youngest, kind, thoughtful, brave, spiritually minded

Smerdyakov-illegitimate, ungrateful, sneaky, devious (creeper alert)

Please join Kate and Sheila discussion about the age-old struggle of good versus evil by looking at the gifted Russian writer, Fyodor Dostoevsky’s discordant family found in

The Brothers Karamazov!

(Translated by the award winning team of Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonskyy)

The father, Fyodor, was selfish, crude, neglectful, immoral, and muddleheaded. All his sons were raised by Grigory, his servant. Fyodor quipped, “I’m a buffoon out of shame…I act up because I’m insecure.”

Alyosha chose a different path than the others. “I want to live for immortality, and I reject any halfway compromise.” His mentor, Zosima, taught him from God’s Word.

He also advised the elder Karamazov, “Above all, do not lie to yourself. A man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point where he does not discern any truth either in himself or anywhere around him, and thus falls into disrespect towards himself and others.”

Dmitri shares with Alyosha, “Here the devil is struggling with God, and the battlefield is the human heart.”

Ivan’s words from his famous speech, The Grand Inquisitor, “He (Jesus) came to give His life for them! Instead of taking over men’s freedom, you increased it and forever burdened the kingdom of the human soul…by so terrible a burden as freedom of choice.”

The action culminates in an unforgettable courtroom scene. Both the prosecutor and the defense attorneys give moving speeches that end with applause. Did Dmitri murder his less than stellar father? If he didn't, who did?

Dostoevsky packs a lot into this book. What is the purpose of life? He shows the importance of living a life well and how the life we live affects others. As Alyosha says in closing,

“How good life is when you do something good and rightful.”

“A crust always looks bigger in another man’s hand.” Trust us this book will look big no matter whose hand it is in : ) It is a mammoth read (823 pages) but well worth the effort if you are looking for a challenge. Happy Reading dear listeners!