Arkady Gaidar facts for kids

Arkady Petrovich Golikov (Russian: Арка́дий Петро́вич Го́ликов; 22 January 1904 – 26 October 1941), known as Arkady Gaidar (Арка́дий Гайда́р), was a Russian Soviet writer. His stories were very popular with children in the Soviet Union. He was also a commander in the Red Army.

Biography

Gaidar was born in Lgov, a town in the Russian Empire, which is now in Russia. His parents were teachers. In 1912, his family moved to Arzamas. Arkady started school there in 1914.

In 1917, when he was just 13, Arkady was a strong supporter of the Bolsheviks. He helped by giving out leaflets and patrolling the streets. During one of these tasks, he was hurt with a stab to his chest.

In 1918, Golikov joined the Communist Party. He also started working for a local newspaper. In August 1918, he became a party member. In December, he joined the Red Army as a volunteer, even though he was younger than the official age. In January 1919, Golikov went to the front lines. He was an assistant to a special unit commander. He fought against groups that were against the new government.

After finishing military courses, Gaidar became a company commander. He fought on the Ukrainian front. In December 1919, he was injured and suffered from shock. He left the army for a short time. But in March 1920, he returned to the Red Army. He was a company commander again on the Caucasian Front. In the summer of 1920, Gaidar took part in battles against other military units.

In 1921, Gaidar helped to stop several uprisings against the communists. In 1922, he was sent to the border with Mongolia. The Red Army was fighting against other army units there. Later that year, he had to go to the hospital. He had health problems from his experiences. He left the army in 1924 because of an injury.

When World War II started, Gaidar went to the front lines. He worked as a special correspondent for the newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda. In the fall of 1941, Gaidar and other soldiers were surrounded by German troops. He joined the partisans, who were secret fighters. He became a machine gunner. On 26 October, Gaidar was killed in a fight near Lyuplyava village. He was buried in the town of Kaniv.

Literary Work

In 1925, Gaidar's first novel, In the Days of Defeats and Victories, was published. He also wrote Life For Nothing and The Mystery of a Mountain. His book R.V.S. (1925) was very important. It set the path for his career as a children's writer. This book told stories about friendship during wartime and the excitement of the revolution.

In 1927, Gaidar moved to Moscow. A year later, he worked for a newspaper in Archangelsk. Back in Moscow in 1930, he published the novel School. In the early 1930s, many articles praised Gaidar's books. Konstantin Fedin was a big supporter and helper for him. In 1939, Gaidar received the Order of the Badge of Honour.

His short stories "The Military Secret" (1935) and "The Blue Cup" (1936) were popular. He also wrote the novel Blue Stars (1939). His most famous work was Timur and His Squad (1940). The hero of this book was named after his son, and partly based on him. This exciting story was about a helpful pioneer youth. It led to the mass Timur movement among Young Pioneers and other children's groups across the Soviet Union.

Many films were made based on his stories. Gaidar's books have been translated into many languages around the world.

Novels

• In the Days of Defeats and Victories, 1925 (short version), 1926 (full version)
• R.V.S. (РВС), 1925
• Life for Nothing, 1926
• Forest Brothers, 1927
• School (Школа), 1930
• Distant Countries (Дальние страны), 1932
• Military Secret, 1935
  • This novel includes a fantasy tale called A tale about a war secret, about the boy Nipper-Pipper, and his word of honour (1933). Nipper-Pipper became a famous child hero in the Soviet Union.
• "The Blue Cup", 1936
• The Drummer's Fate (Судьба барабанщика), 1939
• Blue Stars, 1939
• "Smoke in the Forest" (Дым в лесу), 1939
• Chuk and Gek (Чук и Гек), 1939
• Timur and His Squad (Тимур и его команда), 1940

English translations

• Timur and his Gang, Charles Scribner's Sons, NY, 1943.
• School and Other Stories, Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1967.
• The Blue Cup, Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1981.
• Selected Stories, Raduga Publishers, Moscow, 1986.
• The Drummer Boy and Two Other Stories, Anchor Press Ltd, Great Britain.
• Chuk and Gek, Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1973.

Recognition and Remembrance

Gaidar received two orders and several medals for his service.

A monument honoring him was put up in Kaniv in 1953.

Three movies about Arkady Gaidar were made in the USSR:

• Serebryanye truby (Silver Trumpets) (1970)
• Konets imperatora taygi (The Death of the Taiga Emperor) (1978)
• Ostayus s vami (I'll Stay with You) (1981)

The last movie told the story of Arkady Gaidar's final days.

Pseudonym

Arkady's son, Timur Gaidar, shared two ideas about where his father's pen name came from:

• It might be a short form of French words meaning "Golikov, Arkady from Arzamas".
• The name Gaidar could come from a Khakas language word. This word means "going first" or "the leader". Another idea is that it comes from the Khakas word for "Where is?". Gaidar might have shouted this question as he looked for someone during the Civil War.

Family

Arkady Gaidar's father, Pyotr Isidorovich Golikov, was a teacher. After the 1917 Revolution, he became a Red Army officer. His mother, Natalya Arkadyevna Golikova, was also a teacher. After the Revolution, she became a doctor. Arkady was the oldest of their four children. He had three sisters: Natalya, Olga, and Yekaterina.

The Russian economist Yegor Gaidar was Arkady Gaidar's grandson. Yegor Gaidar's father, Rear Admiral Timur Gaidar, was Arkady's son.

Maria Gaidar (born 1982), a Russian activist, is Yegor Gaidar's daughter.

Images for kids

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  Arkady Gaidar

See also

In Spanish: Arkadi Gaidar para niños