The Gambler

The Gambler, published in 1867, is a short novel about a young tutor, Alexei Ivanovich, employed by a formerly wealthy Russian general.
The novel was completed in a record time – 27 days -, as it was dictated by Dostoesvky to his wife Anna Grigorievna Snitkina. In the meantime, Doestoevsky was writting his most famous novel, Crimes and Punishments, and desperately needed money.
The fact that it was dictated has some importance in the language and the style of the novel.
Furthermore, the theme of the novel, that of gambling addiction, is quite familiar to Dostoevsky, which had the same problems.