Felix Malyarenko facts for kids
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Felix Vasilyevich Malyarenko (born February 2, 1951 – died October 29, 2020) was a Russian Army officer and a talented writer. He wrote poems, stories, and especially books for children and young people. From 2017 to 2019, he led the Saratov branch of the Russian Union of Writers, which is a group for authors.
His Life Story
Felix Malyarenko was born in 1951 in a place called Birobidzhan. His father worked at a factory, and his mother was a seller. After finishing regular school, he went to a military school in Ussuriysk in 1962. Later, from 1969 to 1974, he studied at the Military Academy of Chemical Defense in Saratov.
In 1986, Felix Malyarenko helped with the cleanup efforts after the big accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. He later retired from the Army as a Lieutenant Colonel.
He started writing in the mid-1980s. Over the years, he did many things to share his love for books. He met with schoolchildren in Saratov, traveled to literary events, and took part in book fairs. In 2019, he even presented his book "Tales of Harmful Girls" at a big book exhibition in Moscow called "Red Square."
Many board games have been made for kids and adults based on his books. A singer from Saratov, Vladislava Oksyuta, even performed songs using Malyarenko's poems.
Felix Malyarenko was very popular! In 2014 and 2017, he was one of the top ten best-selling children's writers in Russia. In total, almost three million copies of his books were sold. He was also part of an international writers' group and helped lead the Saratov branch of the Russian Union of Writers.
He was married and had three children.
His Writing Journey
Felix Malyarenko's first stories were published in a book called "Vovka Bulkin iz shestogo „B“" in 1986. He also wrote for newspapers like "Uchitelskaya Gazeta" and "Pionerskaya Pravda", and for magazines such as "Soviet Woman". He even participated in radio shows. In 1991, he published a detective story for children called “Colorful Butterflies.”
His time at the Suvorov military school inspired his story "Suvorov's Sobolev, get in line!". This book was almost published by "Detgiz", but the publishing world changed a lot after the Soviet Union broke apart. So, the book was finally published much later, in 2013.
Between 2011 and 2014, Malyarenko wrote several plays for children. These included "Who Stole Birthday?", "Tales of Mischievous Girls", "Lord of Bubbles", and "The Latest Adventures of Puss in Boots". These plays were performed at the Children's Musical Theater. "Who Stole the Birthday?" and "Tales of Mischievous Girls" were even recorded on discs. In 2016, "Who Stole Your Birthday?" was also performed at a theater in Makhachkala.
In 2017, two of his stories, "Calluses" and "And you dude, comrade captain," were published in a special book called "Literary Almanac."
Felix Malyarenko also wrote a book of poems called "The ABC of Birobidzhan" (2017) as a gift to his hometown. He also wrote a book to remember Nina Nikolaevna Filipkina, an old journalist. This book included poems, translations, and essays about writers and poets who were important to his city and region.
In 2018, he started working with a publishing house in Moscow called "Apriori-press." There, he published more books like "Give a paw, man," "Tale about Masha and semolina," "These are the pigs," "Tales of pigs," and "Tales of harmful girls."
His Passing
Felix Malyarenko passed away on October 29, 2020, at the age of 69. He died from COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Russia.
Awards and Honors
- He received the Medal "For Life Saving" for his help after the Chernobyl disaster.
- He got a special diploma and medal from the Moscow Regional Duma for his great work in children's literature at the "Image of Crimea" festival.
- He won the top prize in the "Children's Literature" category at the X International Literary and Art Festival "Russian Myths."
- He was a winner (2nd place) at the IV International Literary and Music Festival in Saki for his "Poetry for Children."
- He won 1st place in the "Children's Literature" category at the International Literary Competition "Slavic Word."
- He also won 1st place in a literary competition at the "Book Boulevard of Sevastopol" exhibition.
