Russian novelist Dostoevsky faced a firing squad – but was reprieved as the soldiers took aim

BOOK OF THE WEEK DOSTOEVSKY IN LOVE: AN INTIMATE LIFE     by Alex Christofi (Bloomsbury £20, 238 pp) The really great men must, I think, have great sadness on earth,’ said Fyodor Dostoevsky. As we discover from Alex Christofi’s luminous biography, he certainly remained true to his word. ‘I have never experienced happiness. I have always … Read more