Varlam Shalamov (1907–1982) was an outstanding Russian prose writer and poet who spent seventeen years in Stalinist labor camps.
Literary scholars and critics regard Shalamov’s "Kolyma Tales" as a documentary historical testament that captured the great human catastrophe of the 20th century. In his stories, Shalamov goes beyond simply describing the nightmares of the Soviet Gulag. He does not try to strike fear into his readers. He does not call fear by its name. He simply blocks it. But while reading or listening to Shalamov's works, one feels the full horror and suffering contained within them quite literally under their own skin. "Kolyma Tales" are shattering; they demand not only empathy but also a re-evaluation of one’s own life and a definite moral conclusion.
“Remember, most importantly, that a labor camp is a negative school from the first day to the last for anyone at all,” Shalamov wrote. “A human being—neither the official nor the prisoner—should ever see it. But if you have seen it, you must tell the truth, no matter how terrible it is. <…> For my own part, I decided long ago that I would devote the rest of my life to this very truth.”
Author: Varlam Shalamov
Pages: 992 (offset). Hardcover
Dimensions: 220x150x40 mm
Series: Russian Literature. Big Books
