The Telegram

Konstantin Paustovsky, Yuliia Shmatko

Description

Konstantin Georgiyevich Paustovsky was a Russian writer nominated for the Nobel Prize for literature in 1965, 1966,1967,1968.
Paustovsky began writing while still in Gymnasium. His first works were imitative poetry but he restricted his writing to prose after Ivan Bunin wrote in a letter to him: “I think that your sphere, your real poetry, is prose. It is here, if you are determined enough, that I am sure you can achieve something significant.”
Excerpt from “Marlene” by Marlene Dietrich © 1987 by Marlene Dietrich, controlled by her estate.
Andrii Ponomarenko © Ukraine — Kyiv 2023

Sujets

• Vie de famille
• Relations familiales
• Idioma inglés
• English
• Classics
• Fiction
• Anglais

Informations

• Publié par: Andrii Ponomarenko
• Date de parution: 07 avril 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9786178289355
• Langue: English

Extrait

Konstantin Paustovsky
The Telegram
Konstantin Georgiyevich Paustovsky was a Russian writer nominated for the Nobel Prize for literature in 1965, 1966,1967,1968.
Paustovsky began writing while still in Gymnasium. His first works were imitative poetry but he restricted his writing to prose after Ivan Bunin wrote in a letter to him: “I think that your sphere, your real poetry, is prose. It is here, if you are determined enough, that I am sure you can achieve something significant.”

Excerpt from “Marlene” by Marlene Dietrich © 1987 by Marlene Dietrich, controlled by her estate.

Andrii Ponomarenko © Ukraine — Kyiv 2023

ISBN — 978-617-8289-35-5
Table of Contents
Introduction
The Telegram
Notes
Introduction
O nce, by chance, I was reading the novel The Telegram, by Konstantin Paustovsky, in a bilingual edition — on one side was the Russian text, and on the other, the English translation. This novel made so great an impression on me that I could no more forget it than I could the name of the author, of whom I had never heard before. Since I couldn’t get any other novels of this great writer, I bided my time. When I went to Russia, immediately upon my arrival I asked about Paustovsky. Hundreds of journalists assisted me. They didn’t ask me the stupid questions I was used to. I talked with them for over an hour, and was able to gather lots of information about Paustovsky.
I met him in Leningrad where we performed before writers, artists, and actors. Sometimes we gave four performances a day. Each performance took place in the theater or the hall of the sponsor group. On that afternoon, my beautiful interpreter Nora came to Burt Bacharach and me backstage to announce that Paustovsky was in the audience. He had been hospitalized shortly before, following a heart attack, as I had learned upon my arrival at the airport.
I said, “That’s impossible.” But Nora assured me it was so, that he and his wife were there.
I sang, and, oddly enough, Burt Bacharach afterward said I had been splendid. That’s amazing, for when you overexert yourself, the effect is the very opposite most of the time.
After the performance, I was asked to remain on stage. All Russian theaters have stairs leading up to the stage, and soon I saw a man making his way toward me. It was Paustovsky. I was so overcome I was unable to utter a single word. I could express my admiration for him only by sinking to my knees before him. Just imagine that!
His wife calmed me down and explained, “That was good for him,” for I — a nurse concerned about the health of one of her favorite authors — wanted him to return immediately to the hospital. When I consider the great pains that he had taken to see me!
Paustovsky died shortly after this evening, but I still have his books, his short stories, and this memory. He writes in a romantic, but not mannered style. His portrayals recall something of Hamsun. Yet, above all, he is the best Russian writer I know. I regret that I didn’t meet him earlier. I would also have liked very much to have seen Rainer Maria Rilke, but the opportunity never arose. Perhaps at that time he might not have noticed a then unknown admirer.
Later, as a “star,” it was easier to come in contact with particular people.