The outstanding Russian writer Valery Popov from his first works entered the main echelon of the creators of the Soviet Union. His books are distinguished by a combination of grotesque and realistic detailing of the narrative. The writer is based on his life experience, and elements of autobiographicality are present in all his works.
Childhood and family
December 8, 1938 was born a boy Valery Popov, whose family then lived in Kazan. His father was a selection biologist, and none of his relatives had anything to do with art and literature.
When Valery was 6 years old, the family moved to Leningrad, and the future writer was formed in this city. He talks about the fact that from an early age he noticed and remembered various sensations, details, images, and from childhood he was characterized by a grotesque vision of the world. He kept a mocking view of the world for life.
Popov’s childhood was quite traditional for that time: he played with children in the courtyard, went to many circles in the Pioneer Palace, but, interestingly, he was engaged in technical activities - he was not drawn to creativity yet.
Finding the way
After school, Valery Popov goes to college. He does not choose a creative path at all and comes to the Leningrad Electrotechnical Institute. But Valery did not lose at all, since at that time it was the freest and most creative university - LETI's skits were famous throughout Peter, students were constantly joking, competing in wit. Popov says entering the university was an intuitive but absolutely right decision.
It is at the institute that he finds his "guides" in literature and begins to be actively interested in writing, writes poetry. In the early 60s, he fell into the literary association at the publishing house "Soviet Writer", which was located in the house of Singer, and there he found the first teachers - Mikhail Slonimsky and Gennady Horus. Here reigned the spirit of St. Petersburg Oberiuts - Harms, the Serapion Brothers. Inoculation of absurdity, humor, satire and forever received Valery Popov. In his student years, he became close to the St. Petersburg young writing bohemia - I. Brodsky, E. Rein, S. Dovlatov, A. Bitov, V. Kushner. He says that this company was the main happiness of his life, among them reigned a spirit of fun, confidence in his own genius and easy competition. It motivated to creativity, growth, search. The writer says that the role of this environment in his destiny was extremely great, it helped him find his way in life.
Popov graduated from LETI and got a job at the research institute as an engineer, continuing to actively communicate with the writers' party. At this time, he met almost all of the promising writers of Russia at that time, and with many for many years he would be connected by friendship.
Popov’s first story, “I and the Machine,” was published in 1963. The writer enters the correspondence department of the All-Russian State Institute of Cinematography at the screenwriting department, where his writer's view is finally formed. Education did not pass without a trace, and it will soon be noticeable that elements of cinematography are always present in his works.
In 1969, the first storybook was published. In 1970, a new author appeared in the Union of Writers of the USSR - Valery Popov. His biography will now forever be associated with creativity. Since 2003, Popov became the chairman of this creative union of St. Petersburg. Now he is the author of almost thirty books, including collections of short stories, novels, novels and biographical texts. His most famous works are “Life was a success”, “Dancing to death”, “Ink angel”, “Third breath”, “Mushroom pickers walk with knives”.
Literary style
Valery Popov’s writing style is always recognizable by the obligatory grotesque in the texts, Bunin’s love for small everyday details in descriptions, optimism and lightness. He repeatedly admitted that he writes with incredible pleasure, and this is felt in his works. Often his texts are autobiographical - he takes cases from the life of people whom he once met, but always brings situations to such an absolute that the Harms absurdity begins to peer through them.
Valery Popov was and remains a St. Petersburg writer and sixties. This is manifested in the nervousness of prose, in its "disheveled". As the author himself says, he is not occupied with social problems and politics - he is focused on the study of human psychology and on the search for an answer to the classical questions of being.
Creative achievements
Valery Popov is not spoiled for awards - his generation was too rich in geniuses. He was awarded the Order of Friendship, the Order for the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg, laureate of prizes N. Gogol, A.S. Pushkin, S. Dovlatov, Golden Ostap of the Banner magazine. Several of his works were included in the short lists of famous literary awards. If there are modest people among writers, then this is Valery Popov. You can’t see the photo of the writer in the secular chronicle. He is busy with his own business, as well as social activities. His main concern is the well-being of St. Petersburg colleagues in the pen.
The private life of the writer
Popov does not like to talk about his personal life, claiming that he talks about everything in books. Despite the almost confessional nature of the books, no one can circumvent personal topics as much as Valery Popov. The writer's family is a closed door. It is known that he has a wife with whom they survived the tragedy - the loss of a newborn child, which he describes in the book “Dance to Death”.