Penguin Little Black Classics

22 titles in the series
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The Nose Summary

In 1722, Peter the Great introduced a system of positions and ranks for the military, the government, and the Russian court which enabled commoners to gain a modicum of nobility through service to the state. He did so in order to diminish the power of the hereditary nobility with whom he was struggling. This led to large bureaucracies and an obsession with appearances and status, a situation ripe for the brilliant satire of The Nose.

The story is an absurd, comic, surreal, and sometimes grotesque send up of Major Kovalyov, who wakes up one morning to find his nose missing. The story has three parts. In part one, Kovalyov's barber finds his client's nose in his breakfast and is nabbed by the police when he tries to throw it off a bridge. In part two, Kovalyov awakes to find his nose gone. When he leaves to report the loss, runs into it on the street dressed in the uniform of an important official who outranks him. He chases it, but the nose eludes him until it is apprehended it is about to flee the city by coach. The nose is returned to Kovalyov, but it can't be re-attached, leading him to suspect that a curse has been placed on him. Meanwhile, the nose has become the talk of the town. In part three, the Major awakes with the nose fully intact. Things just drift back to normal. The story is a staple of Russian literature, has been staged and adapted numerous times, and has had a monument erected in its honor in St. Petersburg.

Public Domain (P)2021 Douglas Harvey
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Product list

  • Book 1 in the series

    Cover of The Life of a Stupid Man: Ryunosuke Akutagawa (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • The Life of a Stupid Man: Ryunosuke Akutagawa (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • By: Ryunosuke Akutagawa
    Unavailable on Audible.fr
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  • Book 2 in the series

    Cover of The Nose
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    €6.03 or free with trial. Auto-renews at €5.99/month after trial. See eligibility.

  • Book 3 in the series

    Cover of The Meek One (Penguin Little Black Classics)
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  • Book 4 in the series

    Cover of The Great Winglebury Duel
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    €6.03 or free with trial. Auto-renews at €5.99/month after trial. See eligibility.

  • Book 5 in the series

    Cover of The Beautifull Cassandra (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • The Beautifull Cassandra (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • By: Jane Austen
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  • Book 6 in the series

    Cover of Sindbad the Sailor
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  • Book 7 in the series

    Cover of The Atheist's Mass (Penguin Little Black Classics)
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  • Book 8 in the series

    Cover of Oscar Wilde: Lord Arthur Savile's Crime
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    €9.99 or free with trial. Auto-renews at €5.99/month after trial. See eligibility.

  • Book 9 in the series

    Cover of The Old Man of the Moon (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • The Old Man of the Moon (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • By: Shen Fu
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  • Book 10 in the series

    Cover of The Saga of Gunnlaug Serpent-tongue (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • The Saga of Gunnlaug Serpent-tongue (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • By: TBD
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  • Book 11 in the series

    Cover of The Steel Flea (Penguin Little Black Classics)
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  • Book 12 in the series

    Cover of Little Black Classics Single Copy Stock Pack: (80 volumes, 1 each) (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • Little Black Classics Single Copy Stock Pack: (80 volumes, 1 each) (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • By: Jane Austen
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  • Book 13 in the series

    Cover of Little Black Classics Box Set (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • Little Black Classics Box Set (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • By: Various (Author)
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  • Book 14 in the series

    Cover of The World is Full of Foolish Men (Penguin Little Black Classics)
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  • Book 15 in the series

    Cover of Waterloo (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • Waterloo (Penguin Little Black Classics)

    • By: Victor Hugo
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  • Book 16 in the series

    Cover of Stancliffe's Hotel (Penguin Little Black Classics)
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  • Book 17 in the series

    Cover of The Death of Ivan Ilyich
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  • Book 18 in the series

    Cover of White Nights
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  • Book 19 in the series

    Cover of Seven Hanged (Penguin Little Black Classics)
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  • Book 20 in the series

    Cover of Typhoon
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    €12.99 or free with trial. Auto-renews at €5.99/month after trial. See eligibility.

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