Dovlatov Sergey Donatovich - this name is well known in Russia and abroad. Behind him is a famous writer and journalist who has made a significant contribution to world literature. Books written by him are read with pleasure by people in many countries of the world. The biography of Sergei Dovlatov is the history of the Russian people of the second half of the 20th century. The ups and downs of the writer’s fate, in many ways typical of that time, were reflected in his work. To know the main milestones of the author’s life is to understand the stories and stories written by him.
Biography of Sergey Dovlatov
The personality of Dovlatov is surrounded by many myths. Perhaps the most famous of them is associated with his many novels with women. However, people who knew the writer closely affirmed that the two hundred lovers in Leningrad, who were often talked about, were nothing more than fiction. At the same time, Dovlatov owes much to his wife Elena. It was she who played a key role in his emigration and helped develop a career as a writer in America.
Years in the USSR
The future writer was born in 1941 in Ufa in a creative family. His father was a director, his mother was a theater actress. After the end of World War II, together with the Dovlatov family, he returned to Leningrad. He was enrolled in a local university at the Faculty of Philology, but due to poor performance, he could not finish his studies. After serving in the army, he returned to the Northern capital and entered the journalism faculty of the same university. Dovlatov was engaged in journalistic and literary activities at the same time, but his stories and stories were not published, because they contained a bitter truth about reality. In order to be able to publish and receive money for his work, Dovlatov decided to leave Russia. In 1978, he emigrated to New York.
Life in America
Moving to the USA allowed the writer to realize his creative ideas. His books were popular with readers. The Russian-language newspaper New American, which was published by Dovlatov, received many positive reviews. The writer spoke on the radio, published in major publications. Over the years of his life in exile, Sergei Donatovich Dovlatov has published twelve books. Not the last role in the literary success of the writer was played by his last wife, Elena. She spent a lot of time and energy on her husband's career. Despite his success in America, Dovlatov did not consider himself to be a writer. In his biography, he admitted that in America "he did not become a rich and prosperous man."
Dovlatov died in New York in 1990. The cause of death was heart failure. He had four children from different women. The eldest daughter - Catherine - was born in 1966. Four years later, the second daughter Maria was born. In 1975, the third daughter of Alexander was born. In 1984, the son of Nikolai was born.
Author's works
The biography of Sergei Dovlatov is required for study if the reader wants to understand his works, since there are many autobiographical ones. The author paid a lot of attention not only to the text, but also to illustrations for the books he wrote, covers and introductory articles. Philologists carefully study Dovlatov’s correspondence with publishers, which discusses not only issues related to the publication of the book, but also the texts themselves, their content and design.
The writer Sergey Dovlatov is the author of such widely known works as The Reserve, The Zone, The Foreigner, and The Suitcase.
“Reserve” is a story based on events from the life of a writer. The main character, Boris Alekhanov, got a job as a guide in the Pushkin Museum in the village of Mikhailovskoye. The book was published in America in 1983, although a rough draft was created in the second half of the 70s.
"Zone", in the opinion of people who personally knew the writer, is one of his favorite works. Dovlatov worked on it for about twenty years. The story includes fourteen separate stories, united by a common theme: the features of the daily life of warders and prisoners. The history of the design of this book dates back to the time when Dovlatov served in the army and guarded the camp huts. The book was released in the USA in 1982. The writer had to go around several publishers to release it. He was told that the camp theme after Solzhenitsyn and Shalamov was irrelevant, but Dovlatov proved the fallacy of this statement.
The story "The Foreigner" was written and published in 1986. The focus is on Russian emigrants and their life in New York. She is one of the most controversial works of the author. Many contemporaries of Dovlatov called it a blatant failure. Best of all, in their opinion, the author managed to convey the images of Russian emigrants, the text itself is more like a movie script than a literary work. “The Foreigner” is not a book about America, but about a Russian person living in this country. So said Sergey Dovlatov.
"Suitcase" tells the story of a Russian emigrant who left his native country with one suitcase in his hands. A few years later, he began to disassemble it and found things that caused a lot of unexpected memories. The book was written and published in 1986.
In Russia, Dovlatov is a recognized master of the word. Some of his works, in particular “The Zone” and “Suitcase”, were included in the list of one hundred books that were recommended to young readers for independent reading by decision of the Russian Ministry of Education. This event took place in 2013.
Reviews on the books of Dovlatov
Among Russian and foreign readers, Sergey Dovlatov is very popular. The writer's books evoke a lot of positive emotions in them. Readers note the author’s ability to present a difficult story in a light, often ironic form. An important role in revealing the topic is played by the features of the language, lively and expressive at the same time. Some readers compare reading Dovlatov’s book with evening gatherings with his best friend over a cup of hot tea.
To summarize
The biography of Sergei Dovlatov is an example of the life of a person who left his homeland in search of a better fate. Although the writer spent the second half of his life in America, he died and was buried there, he never forgot about Russia. All books were written by him in his native language, and the fate of the Russian people occupies a central place in them. Russia, the people who inhabit it, their fate at home and in exile - that is what Dovlatov wrote about. Books by this author are popular with readers of all ages. They are attracted to the talent of the writer and his ability to convey his thoughts in an easy and understandable way.