Depending on the edition of the book, it can be around 500–700 pages. But don’t be discouraged by the size of the book.

It will probably be one of the best books you ever read in your life if you read it at the right period in your life, and I think that period is somewhere around your late 20s or early 30s.

Why I waited

Even though I am an avid reader and have a particular interest in world literature and classics, I had avoided Crime and Punishment for the first twenty-something years of my life for two reasons. The first one is the size of the book. The second reason was a little more valid. I was afraid that, like many classics, the writing would be tedious. Even though my reasons for skipping the book for all these years were not sound, I am glad that I waited.

Why you should wait

Which brings me to the next question: why am I glad that I waited?

The reason is fairly simple. If I had read this book in my teenage years or in my early 20s, I simply would not have been able to comprehend the depth of the story and the writing. There is only one story going on in the book, but the emotional and philosophical depth of it is truly something else that one can only appreciate after certain experiences in their life.

Many people are forced to read this absolute masterpiece in their school years as a reading task. I feel sorry for them. The book is simply too lengthy for a school task, but the more serious issue is the fact that this is not a book meant for children or teens. This is a book written for a person who has seen life in its gritty shades and is wondering about human psychology.

The book itself

The book itself revolves around a murder. But unlike most thriller books, the story is not about the murder but about the consequences of it.

Within the first few pages, the book sets the scene with a very graphic murder scene when Raskolnikov, a desperate former student, commits a murder without remorse. He imagines himself beyond conventional moral law and tries to justify the murder in his own mind while, at the same time, trying to dodge a suspicious detective who is investigating the murder. But Raskolnikov soon finds out that it is not so easy to escape the consequences of your actions, neither in the real world nor even in your own mind, as the author takes us deeper into the mind of the murderer.

It is less of a murder story and more of a study of the human psyche. The book deals with complicated concepts such as morality, guilt, conscience, legality, rationalisation, a number of philosophical questions, and even love.

The reading experience is not the easiest. With the author using multiple names for almost every character and sometimes abruptly changing the scenario to keep us in the mind of the protagonist, it can be a little challenging at times, and the number of pages can make it tedious. But with a little effort, one can push through. Once you read past the first 200 pages and get caught up in the philosophical debates, the rest will be much easier. But the effort is worth it.

Not only does the book give the reader proper closure, it also leaves many philosophical questions in the mind. But most importantly, the despair of life that is depicted in the book many times can be related to by people in their late 20s because of the existential crises many people face during this period in their lives.

If you are on the younger side, you may read this book, but you might have to revisit it later in your life to get the best experience. For those people who are confused by life like I am, this is a must-read.