The Little Demon

Written by Fyodor Sologub, The Little Demon presents a fiction first published in 1905. At its center are human motives, relationships, conflict, and the consequences of choice, developed through the conventions and freedoms of fiction. This English edition is presented in a translation by John Cournos, Richard Aldington, bringing the work’s original voice into a different linguistic setting. The reading experience is shaped by a character-centered narrative style that rewards attention to voice, structure, and perspective. At roughly 100,745 words with an average difficulty reading profile, it offers a reading commitment that is easy to judge before beginning while still leaving room for close attention. Its continuing value lies in its capacity to make unfamiliar lives and difficult choices emotionally legible. For modern readers, the pleasure comes from entering its particular world while noticing how its central concerns still shape personal and public life. The Little Demon therefore works both as an encounter with Fyodor Sologub’s individual voice and as an example of the wider literary tradition surrounding fiction.