The 19 stories in this book are among the best written in the 19th century.

There are stories by:

Pushkin, Gogol, Turgenev, Dostoyevsky,Tolstoy, Saltykov, Korolenko, Garshin, Chekhov, Sologub, Potapenko, Semyonov, Gorky, Andreyev, Artzybashev, Kuprin.

The queen of spades -- The cloak -- The district doctor -- The Christmas tree and the wedding -- God sees the truth, but waits -- How a Muzhik fed two officials -- The shades, a phantasy -- The signal -- The darling -- The bet -- Vanka -- Hide and seek -- Dethroned -- The servant -- One autumn night -- Her lover -- Lazarus -- The revolutionist -- The outrage.