Nodar Dumbadze facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Nodar Dumbadze
Dumbadze on a 2018 stamp of Georgia
Born	July 14, 1928 Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union
Died	September 4, 1984 (aged 56) Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union
Resting place	Mtatsminda Pantheon
Occupation	Novelist, journalist
Language	Georgian
Nationality	Georgian
Alma mater	Tbilisi State University
Genre	Comic novel, Humour, Novel
Subject	Antimilitarism, Humanism
Years active	1960–1984
Notable works	Granny, Iliko, Illarion, and I (1960)

Nodar Dumbadze (Georgian: ნოდარ დუმბაძე, July 14, 1928 – September 4, 1984) was a very popular Georgian writer. He was known for his stories and novels that mixed humor with a bit of sadness, but always ended with a hopeful message. Many of his books became movies or plays.

About Nodar Dumbadze

Nodar Dumbadze was born in Guria, a region in Georgia. He studied economics at Tbilisi State University and finished in 1950. That same year, his first poems and funny stories were printed in Georgian newspapers.

He worked as an editor for a funny magazine called Niangi from 1967 to 1972. Later, he became an important leader in the Union of Georgian Writers. This was a group for writers in Georgia. He also became a member of a similar group for writers in the Soviet Union.

His most famous books include Me, Grandma, Iliko and Ilarioni (1960), I Can See the Sun (1962), and The Law of Eternity (1978). His writing style was simple and poetic. It often combined humor and a touch of sadness with a strong sense of hope.

Nodar Dumbadze received important awards for his writing. He won the Shota Rustaveli State Prize in 1975 and the Lenin Prize in 1980. He passed away in Tbilisi and was first buried in Mziuri Park. He had helped create this park for children in 1982. Later, in 2009, his body was moved to the Mtatsminda Pantheon, a special burial place for famous Georgians.

Nodar Dumbadze's Books

Nodar Dumbadze started his writing career by publishing three books of funny stories between 1956 and 1957. In 1957, he decided to focus only on writing. He worked for different magazines and helped write movie scripts for a film studio called Kartuli Pilmi.

He continued to write humorous stories, like those in his "Village Boy" collection from 1959.

Famous Novels

His first very successful novel was Granny, Iliko, Illarion, and I, published in 1960. This story is partly about his own life. It takes place in a Georgian village during World War II. Most of the men had gone to fight in the war. The story focuses on a young orphan boy named Zurikela. He lives with his grandmother and two clever, kind, and funny elderly neighbors who look after him.

Dumbadze's next novel, I Can See the Sun (1962), also shared parts of his own life. It showed the tough times in villages during the war. People were worried about their loved ones fighting far away. The main character, Sosoia, is a teenager who loves a blind girl named Khatia. By the end of the story, Khatia's eyesight is restored.

In his 1967 novel, The Sunny Night, the main character tries to reconnect with his mother. She has just returned after being away for twelve years. He also has to decide if he should help the person who caused his family's problems.

Don't Be Afraid, Mama! (1971) tells the story of Soviet border guards. It explores strong friendships between men, the sadness of losing a friend, and the pain of love that isn't returned. Dumbadze even spent time with a border patrol unit to prepare for this book.

The White Banners (1973) follows a man who is wrongly accused of murder. Many characters in the book are criminals who struggle with their place in society and their own feelings.

Dumbadze's last novel was The Law of Eternity, written in 1978. In this book, a very sick patient in a hospital thinks about the constant fight between good and evil.

Short Stories and Novellas

The short story Hellados is about a Greek boy who is leaving for his family's homeland. But at the last moment, he can't bear to leave his friends and the town of Sukhumi. He jumps off the ship to go back and sadly dies in the sea.

In Kukaracha, one of Dumbadze's last short novels, a kind police officer feels sorry for a criminal. But then the criminal shoots and kills the officer.

The story Blood Knot tells about a boy born in 1928, just like Dumbadze. This boy lost his parents during a difficult time in 1937. Like Dumbadze, he was sent to live with relatives in a village.

Awards and Public Service

Nodar Dumbadze joined the Communist Party in 1964. This was a major political party in the Soviet Union at the time. He won many awards for his writing. These included the Shota Rustaveli Prize in 1975, which is Georgia's highest award for arts. He also received the Lenin Komsomol Prize in 1966 and the Lenin Prize in 1980.

He also served in government. He was a representative in the Georgian Supreme Soviet from 1971 to 1978. He was also a representative in the Supreme Soviet of the USSR from 1979 to 1984. From 1981 until his death, he was the Chairman of the Georgian Writers Union, leading the organization for writers in Georgia.

See also

In Spanish: Nodar Dumbadze para niños