The Gambler: "Right or wrong, it's very pleasant to break something from time to time"

Fyodor Dostoyevsky was born on 11th November 1821.

He was introduced to literature very early. At age three, it was heroic sagas, fairy tales and legends. At four his mother used the Bible to teach him to read and write. His immersion in literature was wide and varied. His imagination, he later recalled, was brought to life by his parents’ nightly readings.

On 27th September 1837 tragedy struck. Dostoyevsky's mother died of tuberculosis.

Dostoyevsky and his brother were now enrolled at the Nik...