Nikolai Gogol had a strong literary upbringing: he learned Ukrainian and Russian, his father wrote poetry and was an amateur playwright, and as a child Gogol helped stage his uncle's plays. He began writing while at a school of higher art in Nizhyn, where he earned the nickname "mysterious dwarf." He had a dark and secretive disposition, developed a talent for mimicry and satire, which eventually led to his exile from Russia. His satire was unconventional and much more sophisticated than his contemporaries.Seven of the most iconic tales from the author were selected by the critic August Nemo for your enjoyment:The NoseThe ViyThe CloakOld-Fashioned FarmersThe OvercoatMemoirs of a MadmanThe Mysterious Portrait
Russian novelist Nikolai Gogol was born on March 31, 1809, in Sorochintsy, Ukraine. His first successful book was Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka, which he wrote in the early 1830s, but his 1842 novel Dead Souls is considered his masterpiece. A fanatical priest convinced Gogol to burn the second volume of Dead Souls in 1952. He died later that year, on March 4, 1852, in Moscow, Russia; it's believed that he starved himself to death.
