The Idiot

Publisher: Penguin Classics
Publish date: 2 December 2025
Pages: 784
Binding: Hardcover
Language: English

Subjects: Literature & Fiction, Classics, Genre Fiction, Psychological, Literary

A Dostoyevsky classic about suffering and sickness, now a Penguin Clothbound Classic designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith Inspired by an image of Christ's suffering, Dostoyevsky set out to create a protagonist with 'a truly beautiful soul' and to trace the fate of such an individual as he comes into contact with the brutal reality of contemporary society. The novel begins when the innocent epileptic Prince Myshkin - the 'idiot' - arrives in St Petersburg and finds himself drawn into a web of violent and passionate relationships that leads to blackmail, betrayal and eventually murder. This is a stunning new Clothbound Classics edition of Dostoyevsky's great novel, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith and translated by David McDuff. These delectable and collectible Penguin editions are bound in high-quality colorful, tactile cloth with foil stamped into the design. Penguin Classics is the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world, representing a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.