"Vanka" is a short story by Anton Chekhov following nine-year-old Vanka Zhukov, a orphaned apprentice enduring brutal conditions in a Moscow shoemaker's workshop on Christmas Eve. Hungry, beaten, and desperate, Vanka secretly writes a letter to his beloved grandfather begging to be rescued from his misery. As he writes, vivid memories of village life, winter forests, and his grandfather's warmth flood his mind — making the gap between past joy and present suffering all the more unbearable. The story builds quietly to a devastating final detail.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/ririro-com-short-stories--6577582/support.