★ “Fearless Forward” is a collection of memoir-style essays by Yevgeny Vodolazkin, a towering figure in Russian literature. With a calm and measured tone, he gently recounts various episodes from his life’s journey.
★ Taking his personal life story as the thread, Yevgeny Vodolazkin weaves together his childhood memories from the Soviet era, his academic career as a linguist, and his transformative journey into becoming a renowned writer, thereby sketching out a spiritual map that spans time and space.
★ A candid and intimate literary dialogue that explores how “the mind of a great writer comes to be”: By sharing the creative core behind novels such as “Laurel” and “The Pilot,” the author places himself within the textual universe alongside the characters he has created, seamlessly blending his identity as a historian with that of a storyteller.
★ A profound act of self-exploration and spiritual reflection: In a world marked by constant change and uncertainty, how does one construct an inner order and a spiritual home of one’s own—and in doing so, gain the courage to move forward without fear? This book is a rich blend of precious intellectual archives, distinctive literary insight, and deep resonances with the human experience.

“Fearless Forward” is a memoir-style collection of essays by Russian writer Evgeny Vodolazkin, in which he seamlessly blends his personal life story with his literary创作 and historical reflections through a delicate yet profound narrative. Like a mosaic, this collection weaves together literature and life, the present and the past, in a way that is both intricate and evocative. The author, known for his acclaimed novels “Laurel,” “The Pilot,” and “Brisbane,” recounts various episodes from his life journey in a calm and measured tone—yet each story seems to open a door onto a world far larger than the confines of his personal experience.

His childhood in a Soviet-era kindergarten becomes a shared memory for countless children who attended similar institutions. With a serene and composed voice, Vodolazkin traces his family’s migrations through turbulent historical periods—such as his great-grandfather’s fateful choices during the Civil War—and paints tender scenes of his encounter with his wife. He even uses a cat named Musin to launch a humorous yet deeply philosophical literary dialogue. The book reveals his “little paradise of childhood,” his family history, his hometowns of St. Petersburg and Kyiv, the Pushkin House, his academic pursuits, his transformation from a medieval linguist to a writer, and numerous details about the creation of his novels “Laurel,” “The Pilot,” and “Brisbane.” Through reflections on time, eternity, childhood, and happiness, the book explores how an individual can safeguard a spiritual home amid the sweeping currents of history.

The entire book unfolds like a mosaic, where literature and life are intricately interwoven, and where intimate personal narratives open onto universal meanings that transcend the individual. It is a masterpiece that combines intellectual depth with emotional warmth, demonstrating how a writer can transform language into an enduring imprint that resists the erosion of time. This is an exceptional, wise, and finely crafted book—rich with genuine personal emotion, filled with memories of fellow writers and literary scholars, and imbued with profound reflections on the writing profession, on history, on family, on love, and on friendship.

How does a sensitive individual gather and digest his own memories and traumas, refine them into a unique philosophy for observing time and the world, and ultimately transmute all of this into timeless literature? In this sense, the book serves both as a private archive of memory and as a public creative manifesto—and it is also a reflective meditation on how one can find one’s place in the passage of time. The book concludes with the final essay, “Dear Friend,” which expresses deep concern for the fate of children during wartime, echoing a central theme that runs throughout: literature is not an ornament of life, but an eternal force that helps us understand the past, illuminate the present, and enable us to move forward without fear. This is a truly important and unmissable work—a precious gift for anyone who loves literature.

[Author] Evgeny Vodolazkin
One of the most influential writers in contemporary Russian literature, recipient of numerous prestigious literary awards both in Russia and abroad, his works have been licensed for publication in more than 30 countries. Critics have hailed him as an "encyclopedic, scholarly novelist"! As a renowned contemporary Russian writer, Doctor of Philology, and expert in Old Russian literature and culture at the Institute of Russian Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Evgeny Vodolazkin's main research interests lie in medieval literature, focusing on the concept of historical narrative in ancient texts.

Born in Kyiv in 1964, after graduating from Kyiv University in 1986, he entered the Department of Old Russian Literature at the Institute of Russian Literature of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, where he conducted academic research under the guidance of the eminent Russian cultural scholar Dmitry Likhachev. Since 1990, he has worked in the Department of Old Russian Literature at the Pushkin House Museum (the Institute of Russian Literature located in St. Petersburg), and since 2012 he has served as the chief editor of the Pushkin House Museum's annual journal "Word and Tradition." He has authored numerous academic books and articles and has been awarded research and lecturing positions by the Topf Foundation and the Humboldt Foundation.

Vodolazkin began his literary career in his thirties, excelling in using literary creation as a tool to write about history, fiercely combating today's global "amnesia of history" by linking the past with the present. In 2010, his first novel, "Solovyov and Larionov," was nominated for the Big Book Award and shortlisted for the Andrei Bely Prize. His second novel, "Laurel/Lavr," won the Big Book Award and the Yasnaya Polyana Prize in 2013! It was named by The Guardian as one of the world's ten best literary works about God! Licensed for publication in more than 30 countries! Won the first prize of the 2013 Big Book Award and the third prize in the Readers' Choice category! Shortlisted for the final round of the 2013 Russian Booker Prize! Nominated for the 2013 New Literature Prize! In 2015, he received the "Milovan Vidaković" Award in Serbia, and in 2016, he was awarded the Italy-Russia Gorky (Sorrento) Prize! His work "The Hibernated Pilot" has already been licensed for publication in nearly 15 countries! Shortlisted for the Russian Big Book Award and the Booker Prize! In South Korea, it became a hot topic, and he was invited to attend the "2021 Seoul International Writers Festival"! In 2022, it was shortlisted for the international IMPAC Dublin Literary Award! "The World of Brisbane Where Time Does Not Exist" has already been licensed in multiple languages before publication! "The Defense of the Island" has been shortlisted for one of Russia's most prestigious literary awards—the Russian Big Book Award—in 2021! His new book "The Life of Chakin" has even won the top prize—the Grand Prize of the Big Book Award—in 2023!

[Awards]
2010—The novel "Solovyov and Larionov" was shortlisted for the Big Book Award and the Andrei Bely Prize.
2013—The novel "Laurel/Lavr" won the Big Book Award (first prize).
2013—The novel "Laurel/Lavr" won the Yasnaya Polyana Prize.
2013—The novel "Laurel/Lavr" won the Portal Conference Award.
2013—Shortlisted for the U.S. National Bestseller Award, the Russian Booker Prize, and the NOS Award (for the novel "Laurel/Lavr").
2015—The Serbian award "Milovan Vidaković."
2016—The novel "Laurel/Lavr" won the Italy-Russia Gorky Prize (Sorrento).
2016—The novel "The Pilot/The Hibernated Pilot" won the Big Book Award (second prize).
2016—The novel "The Pilot/The Hibernated Pilot" was shortlisted for the NOS Award, the 21st Century Writers' Award, and the Arkady and Boris Strugatsky Prize.
2017—The Russian Roman Literature Award.
2018—The novel "The Pilot/The Hibernated Pilot" won the Klio History and Literature Award.
2018—The national awards "Russian Rhythm" and "Russian Word" (nomination "For Contribution to Cultural Development").
2019—The Alexander Solzhenitsyn Literary Prize—"In recognition of his skillful integration of deep traditions of Russian spiritual and psychological prose with high linguistic culture; in recognition of his inspired artistic writing style."
2019—The "Pet of St. Petersburg" award (National Hermitage Museum, "Russian Patrons," "Cat Republic").
2019—The novel "Brisbane/Where Time Does Not Exist in Brisbane" was shortlisted for the Big Book Award.
2019—The novel "Brisbane/Where Time Does Not Exist in Brisbane" won the annual national book competition in the prose category.
2019—The novel "The Pilot/The Hibernated Pilot" won the BookStar-2019 Literary Award (Skopje, Macedonia).
2021—The novel "The Defense of the Island" was shortlisted for the ABS Award longlist.
2021—The novel "The Defense of the Island" was shortlisted for the Big Book Award longlist.
2021—The novel "The Defense of the Island" was shortlisted for the Alexander Pyatigorsky Literary Prize longlist.
2021—The novel "The Defense of the Island" was shortlisted for the Big Book Award.
2022—Shortlisted for the Brisbane Dublin Novel Award longlist.
2022—The novel "Brisbane/Where Time Does Not Exist in Brisbane" was nominated for the "Ivo Andrić International Grand Prize" for best novel.
2023—The novel "Chakin/The Life of Chakin" won the Big Book Award (first prize).
2024—The Tsarskoye Selo Art Award.
2024—The Moscow Order of Saint Prince Daniel, 3rd class (Russian Orthodox).

[Media Comments]
"Time is a key character in all of Evgeny Vodolazkin's novels. In 'Laurel/Lavr,' it is indispensable...; in 'The Pilot,' time flows like water in two directions; in 'The Defense of the Island,' time is so innovative that it runs through the entire text..."—Galina Yuzefovich

"Although it is impossible to predict now whether his works will be reread in 10–20 years, in the field of Russian literature, he definitely has his own place."—Alexey Balakin

"After achieving unprecedented success, every new novel by Evgeny Vodolazkin is read with fresh anticipation and reverent attention. The author is mastering a new genre, a diverse range of styles, and creating protagonists who are different from those in his earlier works."—Olga Timofeeva

"Honesty and sincerity are common traits of the protagonists in Vodolazkin's works. They are not prophets, but carriers of certain knowledge that unfolds slowly over time, and time is the generator of inner discovery."—Maria Bashmakova