The Petty Demon is one of the funniest Russian novels. It is also the most decadent of the great Russian classics, replete with naked boys, sinuous girls, and a strange mixture of beauty and perversity. This Symbolist novel, originally published in 1907, offers a vivid portrayal of Russian provincial life through the eyes of the sadistic schoolteacher Peredonov. As Peredonov descends into paranoia and madness, he becomes haunted by a mysterious little demon, Nedotykomka, reflecting the banality and evil of his existence. Recognized as one of the most provocative and sexually open Russian novels, The Petty Demon has left a lasting mark on literature, with Peredonov becoming a symbol of sullen evil and calculating concupiscence. This edition includes censored sections that were originally removed, providing readers with a complete and uncensored experience of Sologub's vision. Peredonov is as comical as he is disgusting. He is at once a victim, a monster, a silly hypocrite, and a sadistic dullard. The plot moves from Peredonov’s petty quest for a promotion to arson and murder via one of the most incredible and uproarious scandal scenes in world literature, the masquerade ball, which the boy Sasha attends as a beautiful geisha.
