Thanks for the mention Harry — it was a pleasant surprise and it came at a great time. I’ve recently thought about revisiting this book and your piece really makes me want to give it another thorough read. I really enjoyed the insights you were able to pull from this book and I’m really glad that you’re bringing this author into the limelight again with your influence.

I found Notes From Underground to be a great read because it really made me hold up a mirror to see myself clearly. It talked about how spiteful we are, how irrational we are, how we are literally a walking paradox, how we can hate someone but desperately want their approval, how we can embody compassion and love one minute, evil and hate in the next…

Dostoevsky was a prophet who foresaw the dangers of the utopian visions of socialists and the horrors of the 20th century. I’ve been able to tackle Crime and Punishment, but The Brothers Karamazov is still intimidating to me… I’ve put it off for far too long haha. There is something about it that stops me from diving into that book. I’ll get to it eventually… I hope.

If you don’t mind another recommendation — Franz Kafka is another great writer that I’ve recently gotten into. The Trial and Metamorphosis were great reads but pretty confusing. Maybe I haven’t taken the time to really sit with the ideas, but I’d like to hear what you have to say about them!

Thanks again for writing this piece Harry! I think it will help a lot of people look into Dostoevsky’s works and philosophy.