The Master of the World and Others

Alexander Romanovich Belyayev is one of the founders of Soviet science fiction. The father of the future writer wanted his son to follow in his footsteps and become a priest. In 1904, Alexander graduated from the Smolensk Seminary but refused the role of a spiritual shepherd, enrolling in the Yaroslavl Law Lyceum. After returning to Smolensk, he became a barrister. He could have made a good lawyer - Belyayev was a wonderful orator. Moreover, he had a lively temperament and exceptional artistic talent. Nevertheless, the legal profession, «all this judicial formalism and casuistry,» as Belyayev wrote, did not satisfy him. Only literature could provide the space for unrestricted creativity. Alexander Romanovich began with reports on theatrical performances. He wrote about musical premieres, published feuilletons. Success came when the writer was already over forty. In 1925, he published the story «The Head of Professor Dowell,» which he later adapted into a novel. The author considered this work partly an autobiographical story, as he had to spend three years in a cast, battling a spinal disease. However, Belyayev overcame his ailment, and his forced immobility prompted him to think about describing what it feels like to be a head without a body. Then followed the publication of novels «The Island of the Lost Ships,» «The Last Man from Atlantis,» «Fight in the Ether»... During this time, Belyayev collaborated with the magazines «World Explorer,» «Struggle of the Worlds,» and «Around the World.» In 1928, a new all-union success - his novel «Man-Amphibian» was published. Herbert Wells wrote that he was a bit envious of the successes of Belyayev's novels, which by the outbreak of war had already been numerous. In the thirties, Belyayev became fascinated with space. He began corresponding with Tsiolkovsky and dedicated his novel «The Star of KETS» to him. The last book published during Belyayev's lifetime was the novel «Ariel.» It was published shortly before the beginning of the Great Patriotic War.

In this edition, all texts of Belyayev's works are presented in their original magazine versions, which often differ from the versions included in the collected works of the writer. Sometimes, magazines feature a different ending, as, for example, in «The Head of Professor Dowell.» Illustrations for the book include drawings from the first magazine publications of the writer's novels and stories. Most of them were done by the remarkable artist Georgy Fitinhof. In this regard, this edition is unique - it will allow fans of Belyayev's science fiction to feel the same emotions and impressions as the first readers of his new works in periodicals, becoming owners of rare texts and illustrations.