In the Depths of Odessa

13 hrs. 22 min.

Classics

Language Russian

Author Lazar Carmen

Narrator Kirill Fedorov

Description

Odessa. A city where the sea laughs in waves and the streets whisper sinful temptations. Nadya came here for happiness—yet found only filth, betrayal, and a long road down to the depths. Lazăr Karmen draws Odessa’s underground life without embellishment: thief dens, taverns where cheap wine flows, and brothels that became the last refuge for those who have nowhere else to go. Society called prostitutes “live goods,” “fallen creatures,” refusing to see real people behind those labels. But behind every name lies a fate: Nadya, Betya, Rozа the Gypsy, Sashа-Chansonette, Toskа, Zukkі, Ksуura “Fire Barrel,” Sima “Fire”… Their stories intertwine into a single picture of downfall and despair.

Lazăr Karmen (real name Lazăr Osipovich Korenman, 1876–1920) was a journalist and publicist known as “Odessa Gorky” for his deep compassion for the humiliated and the dispossessed. His novel “On the Bottom of Odessa” (1904) is a precursor to “The Pit” by A. Kuprin and “Odessa Stories” by I. Babel. The book also includes: “An Answer to Vera” (1903), written together with V. Zhabotinsky; publicist pamphlets “Beware!” and “Wake Up!” (1904), compiled by the author for the Odessa branch of the Russian Society for the Protection of Women—appeals to lone prostitutes and residents of “amusing houses,” where he not only exposes the system, but also offers real help.