Russian Booker Prize
3 appearances
-
Edition 12 (2003) Nominee
-
Edition 14 (2005) Nominee
-
Edition 18 (2009) Winner
Elena Semenovna Chizhova
エレナ・セミョーノヴナ・チジョーヴァ
Erena Semyōnovna Chizhova
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1957 （Leningrad, Soviet Union）
- Nationality
- Russian
- Languages
- Russian
- Residence History
- Saint Petersburg (formerly Leningrad)
Career
- Occupations
- novelist, economist, English teacher, entrepreneur, literary journal editor, translator
- Active Years
- 2000-2024
- Affiliations
- PEN International center in Saint Petersburg (director)
- Memberships
- PEN International
- Nominations
- Russian Booker Prize nomination (Lavra, 2003), Russian Booker Prize nomination (Prestupnitsa, 2005)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Herzen University | — | Economics | — | — | Russia |
Herzen University
Economics
Country:
Russia
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Russian Booker Prize | The Time of Women | — | Booker Prize Foundation | winner |
Russian Booker Prize
2009
Work:
The Time of Women
Organization:
Booker Prize Foundation
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
The Time of Women
2009 Historical novelSet in post-World War II Leningrad, the novel centers on Russian women's quiet resistance and efforts to preserve memories of loved ones, exploring the Soviet legacy. Features multiple intertwining viewpoints creating narrative complexity.
Russian historySoviet Unionwomen's resistancememory
Adaptations
- [Stage play] The Time of Women (2011)
Translations
- English (2012, translated by Simon Patterson and Nina Chorda)
Bibliography
- Kroshki Tsakhes (2000)
- Lavra (2003)
- Prestupnitsa (2005)
- Orest i syn (2007)
- Vremia zhenshchin (2009)
- Terrakotovaya starukha (2011)
- Planeta gribov (2013)
- Gorod, napisannyy po pamyati (2019)
- Povelitel' veshchei (2022)
Translations of Works
- Little Zinnobers (English translation of Kroshki Tsakhes, 2018)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Multiple intertwining points of viewNarrative complexityWesternism tradition in Russian literature
- Recurring Motifs
- Leningrad/Saint PetersburgRussian societyhistoryreligion
Legacy
Best known for winning the Russian Booker Prize in 2009 with The Time of Women, one of few female winners. Her work reexamines Russian history and society.
Quotes
-
I understood that I had done a lot in my life, but none of it was right. And when we were saved, I decided to throw it all away and sit and write.
Source: The New York Times (2010)
Trivia
- In 1996, rescued from a cruise ship fire off Turkey's coast, deciding to become a full-time writer.
- Jewish on her father's side.
- Married to historian Valery Vozgrin (died 2020), with two daughters.
- In 2019, sparked controversy by arguing Stalin shared blame with Hitler for the Siege of Leningrad.