What do the writers themselves read? What authors, plots and characters make a particularly strong impression on them? Every month famous Russian writers answer questions from Psychologies.
1 Book that inspired you to get creative?
All «urban» novels by Yuri Trifonov. Before that, I wrote something in the spirit of Aksenov, but I could not publish it, and I did not ask for help, although I was already friends with Vasily Pavlovich himself. And after reading «House on the Embankment» and «Another Life», he composed something completely unrelated to Yuri Valentinovich — the anti-Soviet action movie «Kristapovich’s Approach», which, it seemed to me, was Trifonov’s intonation. And he no longer dreamed of it, but was determined to publish it, and did publish it as soon as censorship softened …
2 What is the sweetest part of writing a book for you?
The last point, printing out the manuscript and a call from the editor: “Well, in the fall (spring, winter, in a week) we will release it …” And firm confidence: well, I’ll stop there.
3 A book that you return to from time to time.
In general, I return to several books all the time — gradually almost all reading was reduced to such returns. Bunin’s «Dark Alleys» and Warren’s «All the King’s Men», Trifonov’s «Long Farewell» and Aksenov’s «Burn», Brain’s «The Way Up» and Chekhov’s «Three Years»…
4 The best poet in the world?
The best poet in the world — this cannot be. Poetry is purely national, more than cuisine and costume. Every nation has its own best poet. Ours stands on Tverskaya — it cannot be that it was not about our current life that he wrote: “Do they bury a brownie, do they marry a witch?” What does it look like!
5 A book you read recently that explained something important to you about life, history, Russia, Europe, or yourself?
A new novel by Olga Slavnikova «Easy Head». About me. I am not exaggerating and I am not flattering the author — why do I need to flatter Olya, she knows my opinion about her literature. And this does not mean that the novel is brilliant, it is not for us to judge contemporaries, an autopsy will show. It’s just that there is something about me that I myself have not formulated before.
6 Which writer-poet (living or deceased) would you like to talk to personally?
with Pushkin. With Dostoevsky (but he probably wouldn’t have done it himself, just like Alexander Sergeevich, by the way). with Bunin. With Trifonov. I was lucky with the living: I know and communicate with everyone who is interesting and pleasant to me.