Title: A Country Cottage
Date Read: 23 January 2009
Word Count: 664
Briefly: Newlyweds Sasha and Varya are enjoying one another’s company at a small railway station out in the countryside. Love is very much in the air, that is until a surprise arrives aboard the train they are both watching lovingly approach in the distance.
Afterthoughts: At less than 700 words this must be as short as a short story can get (without just being a sentence 
)), but it’s still a classic. In the opening half Chekhov’s prose rings with superlative romantic resonance, showing he can turn his hand to that particular genre, but being Chekhov, with his affection for twists, the romantic mood gets turned on its head during the second half of the story.
Notable Quote: “How beautiful it is, Sasha, how beautiful!” murmured the young wife. “It all seems like a dream. See, how sweet and inviting that little copse looks! How nice those solid, silent telegraph posts are! They add a special note to the landscape, suggesting humanity, civilization in the distance. . . . Don’t you think it’s lovely when the wind brings the rushing sound of a train?”
Rating: 
*Story read as part of my Checkin’ Off The Chekhov Shorts reading challenge.
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