Stories

Dmitry Narkisovich Mamyn-Sibiryak (1852-1912) - Russian writer, playwright. He was born at the Visimo-Shaitansk plant (Ural) in the family of a factory priest. The family lived quite modestly, but thanks to his father's efforts, the future writer received a good home education. Later, D.N. Mamyn-Sibiryak studied at the Spiritual School of Yekaterinburg and the seminary in Perm, but the path of a priest did not attract the young man at all, and in 1872 he transferred from Perm to St. Petersburg to the Medical and Surgical Academy. His childhood passion for literature did not leave him, and in 1875 D.N. Mamyn-Sibiryak began working as a reporter for one of the St. Petersburg newspapers. His first children's story "Emelya the Hunter" was published in 1884. The story tells of the difficult fate of little Grishutka, who was left an orphan. He lives with Emelya the Hunter, who knows all the picturesque forests around their village. When the boy fell ill, he asked his grandfather to catch a fawn. For several days, Emelya tracked the deer and finally stumbled upon their trail. But the hunter, captivated by the mother-deer bravely defending her child, could not kill them. Emelya remembered how his mother had sheltered Grishutka from wolves with her body and felt pity for the deer. In 1885, the story "Spit" was published. The main character, twelve-year-old Proshka, spends all his time in a cramped workshop by the wheel of a grinding machine. The owner of the workshop treats the boy well, but in reality, he is indifferent to his fate. One day, a noble lady with her son appeared in the workshop. She shows concern for Proshka's fate, but even here there is no sincerity: Anna Ivanovna hopes that the visual example of the small spit will rid her son of the lordly habits. And Proshka feels this falsehood. Even when seriously ill, he refuses to move to the warm house of Anna Ivanovna and dies in the workshop. In this book, children will be introduced to the stories "Emelya the Hunter" and "Spit". For younger school age. The texts of the works are presented without abbreviations.