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Akexandr GenisRussian American writer, essayist, literary critic, critic, radio host.
Date of Birth: 11.02.1953
Country:  USA |
Content:
Alexander Genis: Biography
Alexander Genis is a Russian-American writer, essayist, literary critic, and radio host. He was born on February 11, 1953, in Ryazan, where his father worked at a factory manufacturing radars for the defense industry. In 1977, Genis emigrated to the United States and currently resides in New Jersey.
Early Life and Education
Genis's family moved to Riga when he was young, and it was there that he grew up, completed his education, and enrolled in the Faculty of Philology at the University of Latvia. Despite immigrating to the United States a year later, Genis still considers Riga, with its rich culture, his true hometown.
Early Career
After university, Genis initially worked as a firefighter for some time. However, he found it difficult to pursue his passion for writing, and he made the decision to move to New York City, which became his second beloved city. In New York, Genis faced challenges as a young immigrant and took on various jobs to support his growing family. He worked as a manual laborer in a company that produced expensive jeans from cheap materials but was eventually let go due to a lack of enthusiasm. Genis then found another job as a laborer but was once again let go. With the help of acquaintances within the Russian immigrant community, he secured a position at the newspaper "Novoe Russkoe Slovo," where he learned the complex profession of typesetter and compositor. However, with the advent of computers, typesetters were replaced by computer operators.
Writing Career
Through his connection with Sergei Dovlatov, Genis began writing for the newspaper "Novy Amerikanets." However, earning enough to support his family solely from his work at the struggling publication proved to be impossible, especially when it eventually closed down. Genis and his colleague Pyotr Vail decided to collaborate on writing books, which ultimately brought their names recognition both in Russia and abroad. Together, they published six books, including "The World of the Soviet Person," "Russian Cuisine in Exile," "Native Language," and "Amerikana." The most famous of their works is undoubtedly "Russian Cuisine in Exile." As the country opened its borders in the early 1990s, Genis's and Vail's books began to be published in Russia. The publication of "Native Language," with a print run of 100,000 copies, sold out in one day. "Russian Cuisine in Exile" was published in book form, serialized in magazines and newspapers, and quoted extensively in private conversations and on television.
Later Career
In 1990, Genis and Vail went their separate ways, and Genis's writing style underwent a transformation. His books have been translated into numerous languages, including English, French, German, Italian, and Japanese. Since 1984, Genis has hosted a weekly program on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Remarkably, he has not missed a single episode in the 26 years since the show's inception. He also worked on a television series called "Genis: Letters from America" for the Russian channel "Kultura." In addition to his radio and television work, Genis contributes to various publications, including "Novaya Gazeta" and "Esquire," and he is a prominent blogger on the website "Snob." He is also a member of the editorial board of the journal "Foreign Literature."
