The Man from the Restaurant

Ivan Sergeevich Shmelev (1873-1950) — a Russian writer and publicist, twice a nominee for the Nobel Prize; nicknamed the «Orthodox literator» for a large number of texts on the spirituality of the Russian person. While in exile, «not for a... moment in his spiritual burning does he cease to think of Russia and suffer from its misfortunes».

The story «The Man from the Restaurant» brought the author «real fame» and marked the end of the first phase of his creativity. The story is told from the perspective of the waiter Yakov Skorokhodov, who has worked in this position for over twenty years. He barely makes ends meet but believes it is right to earn money legally. However, a series of misfortunes befall his family: the arrest of his son Kolya for connections to the revolutionary underground, his father's unemployment, and his daughter Natasha's unfortunate situation...
Written under the impression of the Revolution, which turned upside down the previous measured life of peaceful citizens, the work is full of heavy events, but it also emphasizes the importance of «awakening consciousness», reminding that it is unacceptable to blindly follow the expression of someone else's will.