The best memoirs help us better learn about the fate of famous personalities, how their life evolved, how certain historical events took place. Memoirs, as a rule, are written by famous people - politicians, writers, artists who want to tell in detail about the most important moments of their life, episodes that influenced the fate of the country. List of authors whose works are presented in this article:
- Ivan Bunin;
- Eugene Ginzburg;
- Vladimir Nabokov;
- Ilya Ilf and Evgeny Petrov;
- Haruki Murakami;
- George Zhukov;
- Salvador Dali.
"Cursed days"
The list of the best memoirs always includes the book of Nobel laureate Ivan Bunin "Cursed days." It was written in 1918, but first saw the light of day only in 1926, and then abroad. On the territory of modern Russia, this best book of memoirs of a famous novelist was published only after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
This is a deep philosophical and journalistic work in which the author analyzes in detail the important events in the history of his native country, which he himself witnessed. This is the October Revolution and the ensuing Civil War. With amazing accuracy, Bunin was able to capture on the pages of this book the experiences, worldviews and meditations that reigned in the heads and souls of our compatriots in those years. The book is of great interest to a wide range of readers and professional historians, because the author scrupulously captures all the events around him.
In addition, “Cursed Days” are important for understanding Bunin's entire work, they reflect a crucial stage in his life when, due to events in his native country, he had to emigrate, work abroad, and far from his homeland. The basis of these memoirs is the author’s comprehension of the events that took place in Moscow and Odessa in 1918-1919.
Steep Route
Among the best memoirs, it is worth noting the book “The Steep Route” by Evgenia Ginzburg. Researchers define it as a chronicle of the cult of personality. In 1967, it was published in the United States, and only appeared in the USSR in 88th.
In the first part, Ginzburg describes the events since the assassination of Kirov in the 34th, and then his own arrest after three years and two years spent in solitary confinement in Yaroslavl. The second part is devoted to transfer to a labor camp in Kolyma, and the final part to release, exile in Magadan and rehabilitation in 1955.
This is a very honest and sincere book, so it is included in the list of the best memoirs and memoirs.
"Other shores"
The autobiographical book of another Nobel laureate Vladimir Nabokov was written in the United States in 1954.
“Other Shores” covers a large period of the author’s life, starting from the first years of the 20th century and ending in May 1940, when Nabokov left for Europe from America to permanently reside. During these years, many events take place that determine not only his fate, but also the fate of the whole country, of all its peoples.
Among the best memoirs and biography, many distinguish precisely “Other Shores”, because we see the understanding of the events through the eyes of one of their direct participants, who lost his father (his father was the leader of the Cadets who was killed during the assassination attempt), was forced to leave his country forever .
"One-story America"
It is worth noting that among the best memoirs are not only books about his country, but also detailed and vivid impressions of other states. A vivid example is the travel essay by Ilya Ilf and Evgeny Petrov "One-Storied America". It was written based on the results of their trip to the United States, came to the USSR in 1937.
On the pages of these memoirs, the authors describe in detail and in detail the ordinary life of Americans, introduce Soviet people to the most famous people of the United States at that time (Hemingway, Ford, Williams, Steffens), describe the largest cities in the United States of America that they manage to visit (New York, Kansas, Chicago, Oklahoma, New Orleans, Washington), they even visit poor Mexican villages and Indian wigwams, meet migrants from Russia who have left and have long lived in the USA, for example, with Molokans (they were considered heretics in Ro the Russian Empire and contributed to their expulsion), they talk about national American sports that are surprising and unfamiliar to Soviet readers (rodeos, American football, wrestling, bullfighting), give a visual and picturesque description of beautiful American landscapes, visit the White House.
From the same book, readers will learn how film production works in the world's largest film studio in Hollywood, as well as about the unique invention of Americans - the electric chair, with which the death penalty is carried out.
In total, Ilf and Petrov spent three and a half months in America, having managed to cross it twice from one end to the other during this time.
"What I'm talking about when I talk about running."
In a very unusual form, memoirs of Japanese writer Haruki Murakami "What I talk about when I talk about running." They were released relatively recently in 2007. This is a collection of autobiographical essays in which the writer talks about his passion for long-distance running, participation in marathons and ultramarathons, comparing sports throughout the book with painstaking writing.
This book is divided into chapters in which Murakami discusses sporting events, recalls how he began to play sports and write his first books, talks about a trip to Greece and participation in the famous marathon, about exhausting trainings, which he compares with painstaking writing.
In Russia, the book was published in 2010.
"Memoirs and Reflections"
That is what the best memoirs about the war are called, the author of which was the legendary Marshal Zhukov, who defeated the Germans in World War II. In this book, he recalls in detail his whole life and tries to give her an objective assessment.
He begins with a description of the childhood that passed after the hard peasant labor. Then in 1915 he was drafted into the army at the height of the First World War. He admits that he was not enthusiastic, since all the way along the way to the front he constantly met cripples and wounded, injured on the front line.
Tells in detail about his participation in the Civil War. In his opinion, one of its most important results was the unity of the people, the army, the dominant role of the party in these matters.
A significant part of the memoirs is dedicated to the Great Patriotic War. Zhukov talks a lot about his responsibility in these years. In particular, it provides a detailed chronological description of events and recollections of the actions of the country's top leadership in those tragic years.
"The Diary of a Genius"
Many consider one of the best memoirs and biographies of Salvador Dali's book "The Diary of a Genius." It was published in Paris in 1964.
This is a diary that the famous artist wrote, trying to prove that even the everyday life and everyday life of a genius is significantly different from what happens in the life of an ordinary person. Talking in detail about his personal life, Dali seeks to prove this, and also actively comments on the historical events of which he was a direct witness.