Pevear and Volokhonsky are unreadable. Choose any other translation for your Russian lit.
I don't know how accurate the translations are because I don't know Russian, but the English was readable and pleasurable to read.
> And that is why one should never read any translation by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky. They translate literary masterpieces word by word, with no appreciation of what the author is trying to accomplish or what makes a great work extraordinary.
If you're interested in Pevear and Volokhonsky's translation methodology, check this out: http://columbiajournal.org/translation-lecture-richard-pevea...
> Pevear explained that they first began translating when they happened to both be reading Crime and Punishment at the same time – Pevear in English, Volokhonsky in Russian – and they compared sentences and saw how radically different they were. Since then, they have developed a system: Volokhonsky makes the first draft, trying to translate as literally as possible [...], explaining any clichés or colloquialisms. Then Pevear looks at the “scribble” (as Volokhonsky calls it), and he “puts it into English” (Pevear said, sighing). Pevear asks Volokhonsky questions, and, in the creating of the third draft, she answers them. Finally, before sending anything off to their editor, Pevear reads the English version out loud while Volokhonsky follows along in the original Russian text.
Perhaps your problem is less these translators, and more sufficiently complicated literature that needs some time to digest...
I contains a couple of passages comparing P&V to the more 'readable' translation by Anthony Briggs. If nothing else it will give you a good example of their style and let you decide for yourself if they're something for you.