The Dream of a Ridiculous Man (Episode 2) by Fyodor Dostoevsky

[Frank Marcopolos]

Friends,

The concluding episode of "The Dream of a Ridiculous Man" is now up on the site. Since Dostoevsky can seem intimidating, I've been making jokes on my Facebook fan page like:

"Yah, sure, Dostoevsky wrote some pretty good stuff, like the novels Crime & Punishment and The Brother Karamazov. But everyone knows his true masterpiece is The Dream of a Ridiculous Man. Say what? That story's up on the website right now? ...Huh. Ain't that a coinky-dink? And lucky for YOU, kind sir or gentle lady, who get to head over there and listen to this Frank Marcopolos fella perform the Hell out of it."

and

"Also, too, I love the fact that if anyone ever called Dostoevsky "Dusty," he immediately punched them in the neck. Which is Russian for "Don't do that."

..and to a lesser extent I've been doing the same with the Mark Twain stories. I've done this because I'm trying to make these guys a little more accessible for folks, rather than being "one of those guys they tried to teach us about in high school." I don't know if I've succeeded in that regard, and based on the low number of visitors to the site I think I haven't in fact, but that was the intent, anyway. Just so you know.

I hope you've been enjoying my performances as much as I have enjoyed putting them together. In fact, when I think about it, these performances are, really, my love letters to the world of letters. It's a world that has brought me too much joy, I think, to NOT give something back to it.

Anyway, hope all's well with you. Shoot me an email anytime about anything, even just to say, "Hello."

Cheers,

Frank

FrankMarcopolos.com
Like books-on-tape, but different
http://frankmarcopolos.com

PS...The following stories will be appearing on the site next:

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce
The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe
The Minister's Black Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne
My Favorite Murder by Ambrose Bierce

...and I've just learned that a story by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., "The Big Trip Up Yonder," never had its copyright renewed! (According to Project Gutenberg.) So, that means I can perform it on the site, legally. That'll be a cool way to start the new year, I think, with a little Vonnegut-ness. Sweet.

So, if you're a fan of any of these guys, you can look forward to hearing these stories soon.

*******

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