Chekhov A. "Sakhalin Island" Essays - Travel Notes

In 1890, Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, in a burst of civic feeling and wanting to escape from a boring life, went to Sakhalin, where convicts were exiled at that time.
As a result of a three-month journey, a book of the same name was published, which included notes on the weather, flora, fauna and legends of the island, as well as an uncompromising description of the terrible prison life.
The book made such a big resonance in society that the Main Prison Administration and the Ministry of Justice sent a special commission to Sakhalin, which confirmed the veracity of the writer’s words and initiated reforms in the field of exile and penal servitude in the Russian Empire at the end of the 19th century.
This publication also includes essays “From Siberia” and stories touching on criminal and judicial topics.