Joseph Brodsky: An Attempt at Literary Biography

The book about Joseph Brodsky, written by Lev Losev, was first published in 2006 and immediately became a significant cultural event. It is impossible to reduce the biography of such an exceptionally gifted poet to a mere sum of more or less known facts. The life path of Joseph Brodsky is inseparable from his literary path; their mutual influence is undeniable, and the dramatic turns in the poet's fate were primarily determined by his quest for creative freedom. Lev Losev's connection with Joseph Brodsky was not only a long-standing friendship: Losev translated his essays and was a researcher and commentator on his poetic legacy. Losev titled his book "An Attempt at Literary Biography," merging the biographical narrative with various aspects of Brodsky's creative biography, addressing the roots of his poetics, ethical and aesthetic credo, the influence of literary tradition, etc. Brodsky emerges not only as an extraordinarily courageous man but also as an original thinker and an outstanding master of words.