Squaring the Circle: (47 New Russian Writing)

"Squaring the Circle" is Russian prose by a new generation of authors from various parts of Russia who never lived in the USSR and who, unlike older writers, are not fighting the Soviet past. Young people have no algorithms for building their lives and careers. There are no guarantees, but anything is possible.

About the Author :
Alisa Ganieva (pen name Gulla Khirachev) was born in 1985 in the Daghestani village of Gunib in the Caucasus. Later the family moved to Makhachkala, the capital of Daghestan. Alisa Gunieva is a graduate of the Moscow Literary Institute and works as a critic for the leading literary periodicals. She also writes avant-garde children s tales. In 2009 she won the Debut Prize for Salam, Dalgat, her debut in fiction for adults. Aleksei Lukyanov was born in 1976 near the town of Solikamsk in the Urals. He studied at the Solikamsk Teacher-training College, his studies interrupted by army service. Subsequently he changed many occupations and finally chose the profession of a smith. He is a prolific author with several short novels and a great number of short stories to his name published in the leading literary journals and hailed by critics for their ingenious use of the language and intricately woven allusions. (Book Review) Lukyanov is twice finalist of the Debut Prize and winner of the New Pushkin Prize for innovative treatment of Russian literary traditions. Igor Savelyev was born in 1983 in Ufa (Bashkiria). He has a degree in Philology from Ufa University and is now writing his PhD dissertation on contemporary Russian criticism. He has been publishing his work since 1999 in the leading literary magazines. His short novel Pale City, based on personal hitchhiking experiences, was shortlisted for the Debut and the Belkin prizes in 2004. As a critic Savelyev was awarded the Ural magazine s prize for 2008. Critics unanimously praised his prose for its masterful, finely chiseled style based on brilliant counterpoints like a virtuoso music piece. Here realism is bordering on phantasmagoria a striking sample of new-generation psychological prose. Polina Klyukina was born in 1986 in the city of Perm in the Urals. She is currently a student at the Moscow Literary Institute and the Publishing University s Department of Journalism as well as writing for the leading periodicals. She published her stories in Novy Mir for 2009. Klyukina was a Debut finalist in 2008. Denis Osokin was born in 1977 in Kazan (Tatarstan). He studied psychology at Warsaw University before enrolling in Kazan University s Department of Philology which he finished in 2002. Apart from the Debut Prize in 2001 he was also a finalist of the Andrei Bely Prize (2004) and Yuri Kazakov Prize (2005), winner of the Star Pass Prize (2008). His short stories are regularly appearing in leading literary journals and his book Ladies of the Maple came out in 2003 from NLO. As a screenplay writer he works for the cinema and TV. "