I can say that you can heard something of Venedict Erofeev or not, but if you're interested in literature and know something of postpodernism. Surely, you not just heard his name but read his small poem Moscow - Petushki.

Venedict Erofeev (24.10.1938 - 11.05.1990) is a writer who was born far above the Arctic Circle and became famouse throughout the world. He was fiths child in a family. His father is a railway master and mother is a housewife. His destiny was so unusual according to the name his mother Anna chose for him. Later, his sister remembered that their mother had a romantic feeling for some guy called Venedict in her youth. She gave this name for her youngest child as a memory of those days.

The childhood of a writer was really hard like for every child born in 40th. Together with his mother and brothers and sisters he were safely evacuated to a native village in a wartime. They hardly have anything to eat, struggled with scurvy. The only food that helped them to survive was potatoes that they dug out of the frozen ground. They made some kind of potato bread. It was nearly of Black color and had bitter taste. This way they lived for a year. His father took them home in October 1943.

The 1st of September 1945 Venedict went to school with his brother Boris. Although he was 1 year younger his brother, Venedict coped with school programm. His talent for study was shown by life situation. Venedict had a pair of felt boots both for his brother and himself. Boris went to school and Venedict did hometask for both. The only thing his brother Boris struggled against was his duty to bring books from a library for Venedict every day.

The year Venedict start his study brought disaster to a family. His father Vasiliy was arrested for 5 years. His mother hadn't any work and couldn't find anything. She considered as a wife of "public enemy". Boris and Venedict showed up in a State care in 1947. It was the time Venedict built up himself as a person.

When his father was released from a concentration camp in 1953 for the short time the whole family gethered together. Children were taken away from the State care. At this time Venedict was going to graduate secondary school and enter Moscow State University.

This way the life of a well-known writer began.