In our age of information overload, the “white noise” drowns out many interesting events and big names. Perhaps only those who regularly follow the news in the literary world are aware of the existence of the annual Russian Booker Prize. To whom and for what it is awarded, we will consider.
In 2014, Vladimir Sharov, a well-known historian, writer, and author of intellectual novels, was her laureate. But first about the prize itself.
History of the Russian Booker Award
In the literary world, the Booker Prize, the oldest among non-state prizes, has a prestigious reputation. The initiator of its foundation was the British Council in Russia. Established in 1992, it has been awarded for the best Russian-language novel for 25 years. The project is similar to the British Booker Prize, but organized completely differently.
The right to nominate works in the nomination belongs to publishers and editorial offices of major literary magazines, libraries and universities, the list of which is approved by the Committee annually. The main goal of the award is to draw the attention of the reading public to serious works that claim humanism as the main value traditional for Russian literature.
Since 2012, the prize fund has been provided by Globex Bank, the country's largest financial institution. This is the sixth trustee in the lifetime of the award. With his arrival, the prize money of the laureate increased to 1.5 million rubles, and the finalists - up to 150 thousand rubles.
Return to Egypt - Laureate's novel
In 2014, at a ceremony held at the Golden Ring Hotel, literary historian A. Aryev named the winner of the Booker Prize. They became Vladimir Alexandrovich Sharov. In addition to him, other famous writers claimed victory: Z. Prilepin with the novel "The Abode"; V. Remizov - “Free Will”; E. Skulskaya - “The Marble Swan”, etc. But the best was recognized as the epistolary novel of Sharov V. “Return to Egypt”. It was published in the journal “Banner” (No. 7-8 for 2013).
In his novel, historian and essayist Vladimir Sharov once again tries to unwind a tangle of Russian history. Before the readers in letters appears the story of family members of the protagonist Kolya Gogol. All of them are descendants of the great writer Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol, living in the twentieth century. Before the revolution, the family gathered in a Little Russian estate, where they set up and played The Inspector General, later they all scattered around the world - someone left, someone hid, and others died. Their correspondence is the basis of the novel. All the surviving members of the family are obsessed with one idea: if we could finish the remaining unfinished parts of Gogol’s novel “Dead Souls,” then the history of Russia could change the development vector under the influence of an artistic word and take the right direction towards God-acceptance.
The novel "Return to Egypt" is purely theoretical, it is filled with historiosophy mixed with the theme of mystical knowledge of God, very close to the author and well studied by him. The epistolary genre creates unobtrusiveness and lightness of the text; excursions into history are not accompanied by extensive argumentation, but this does not make the novel superficial.
Of course, “Return to Egypt” is an outstanding historical and philosophical work, which can become a handbook for readers with a tendency to think.
About the writer, candidate of historical sciences V. A. Sharov
Vladimir Sharov was born on April 07, 1952, a native Muscovite. His father is Alexander Sharov, a famous Soviet writer. The family is traditionally literary - close relatives of Vladimir were also writers, journalists or publishers.
After graduating from the historical faculty of the University of Voronezh, he worked as a loader, then as a worker for archaeologists, then as a literary secretary.
He began his creative activity as a poet (New World magazine, 1979). His first novel "Trace in Trace" appeared in 1991. He wrote novels: “Before and During,” “The Resurrection of Lazarus,” “May I Not Have Pity,” “The Old Girl,” and others. His books of particular interest to the thinking public have been translated into several foreign languages.
Without a doubt, Vladimir Sharov today is one of the most prominent writers. His novels are a favorite reading for Russian intellectuals. The author himself believes that he writes primarily for himself, and the fact that his thoughts are interesting to someone else is a gift for him.
Literary Prize in 2017
The next competition for the best Russian-language book has already been announced. From 2017, the premium fund will be provided by the production company Fetisov Illusion. Its size remains the same.
The jury headed by the chairman P. Aleshkovsky, Booker laureate of 2016, includes: literary critic A. Skvortsov, poet A. Purin, writer A. Snegirev (Booker Prize 2015), director of the regional library in Penza M. Osipova . The long list will be released on September 8; six finalists shortlisted on October 26th. Well, the name of the winner will be known on December 5.
Authors who publish their novels from June 16 last year to June 15 this year can count on the nomination. Literary circles are waiting with great interest for the results.