Dostoevsky for сhildren: the failure or success of the first children's book, compiled by Anna Dostoevskaya (1883)

The publication introduces into scientific discourse the history of the first children's edition of Dostoevsky's works, published in 1883 by his widow under the title “Russian children: from the works of F. M. Dostoevsky”. The release of this publication in the press was a significant stage both for the history of the writer's literary reputation and for the further development of the publishing activities of Anna Dostoevskaya. The disputes emanating from that publication about whether the works of Dostoevsky are suitable for children, led to the fact that Anna, in her subsequent books for young readers, developed new publishing strategies, paying greater attention to the paratextual elements of books (e.i. title, epilogue, design, etc.). On the basis of archival sources, journal reviews and sociological surveys of the 1880s, the article describes an early stage of the publishing project “Dostoevsky for children”, identifies the criteria that Anna Dostoevskaya used while implementing it, shows the history of perception of the anthology by Russian critics and readers. In the course of the study, the dates of two letters of Orest Miller to Anna Dostoevskaya were clarified.