Leonid Yuzefovich
Beyond the Classics: What are the Trends in Russian Literature Today?
11 April, 2.30pm, Thames Room, EC 1, LBF
Echos of the Past: Russian Historical Fiction
12 April, 10am, Thames Room, EC 1, LBF
Ruler of the Desert – presented by Leonid yuzefovich, author, and Nibbe & Wiedling Literary Agency
12 April, 11am, Russian Pavilion W555, EC 2, LBF
Public Reading and Discussion
14 April, 6pm, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1SR
Working with the Russian Word in the 21st century
15 April, 5.15pm, The Princess Dashkova Russian entre, University of Edinburgh, 14 Buccheluch Place, Edinburgh
Biography
Born in 1947 in Moscow, Leonid Yuzefovich spent his youth in the Urals, graduating from the History Faculty of Perm University. He then became an officer in the Soviet Army, serving in Buryatia and Mongolia. Since 1984 he has lived in Moscow.
With a PhD in history, Yuzefovich worked for many years as a school history teacher and did not start writing in earnest until late in life. Since then, however, he has authored many novels including Prince of the Wind, Rough Riders, and Kazaroza, as well as several historical investigations, such as Sovereign of the Wilderness.
Yuzefovich's most recent success is Cranes and Dwarves. Winner of the 2009 Big Book, it is a tour-de-force which unfolds in three settings: present-day Mongolia, Russia in 1993, and the 17th century. As well as locating Russia’s turbulent 1990s within times of social unrest and the sweep of world history, the novel also explores the limitations of the concept of the 'self'.
Yuzefovich has been published in Germany, France, Poland, Italy, and Spain, and his short stories The Butterfly and The Storm have been translated into English. He is the winner of the National Bestseller Award (Russia, 2001), the Big Book Prize (Russia, 2009), and the High Calibre Prize (Poland, 2007).
Books /selected/
Самодержец пустыни / Ruler of the Desert (2010)
Журавли и карлики / Cranes and Dwarves (2009)
Казароза / Kazaroza (2002)
Князь ветра / Prince of the Wind (2001)
Prizes and awards /selected/
2009 - The Big Book Award
2007 - Shortlisted for the Russian Booker Prize
2001 - The National Bestseller Prize