Boris Strugatsky Dies: Legendary Russian Sci-fi Writer Dead At 79
It’s a sad day for Sci-Fi fans everywhere. Acclaimed Soviet Russian science-fiction writer Boris Strugatsky has died at the age of 79.
According to RFERL.org, Strugatsky, famous for co-authoring dozens of sci-fi novels along side his late brother Arkady, died Monday in a St. Petersburg hospital, where he had been admitted a few days ago in what doctors had described as a “grave condition.”
The Arkady and Boris Strugatsky foundation confirmed his death on its official site.
Born in 1933 in Saint Petersburg, Strugatsky graduated from the Faculty of mathematics and informatics of the Leningrad State University, specializing in star astronomy. After earning his degree, he worked as an astronomer and computer engineer until 1966 when he became a full-time writer.
Along with his brother Arkady, Boris authored 27 novels from 1958 to 1988 as well as a number of short stories.
Several of their works were translated into German, Polish, French, English, and Italian but did not receive the same magnitude of the critical acclaim granted them by their Russian audiences.
In the United States The Strugatsky brothers are best known for their novel “Roadside Picnic,” which was adapted for the 1979 movie “Stalker,” directed by Andrei Tarkovsky.
After his brother’s death in 1991, Boris Strugatsky published two novels on his own (“Search for Designation or Twenty Seventh Theorem of Ethics” and “The Powerless Ones of this World”) and was known for his active stand on political issues, frequently criticizing President Vladimir Putin and calling his policies a return to stagnation of the late Soviet era.
via Phys.org
