Nostalgia

To mark the 150th anniversary of Nadezhda Teffi, we are pleased to present “Nostalgia”—tragicomical memoirs by the “Queen of Russian Humor.” In 2022, 150 years will be celebrated since the birth of Nadezhda “Teffi” Lokhvitskaya. A universal favorite adored and noticed by audiences of all kinds—from Lenin and Nicholas II to Ilya Repin and Grigory Rasputin—she was and remains a unique phenomenon in Russian literature. She was called the first Russian humorist of the early 20th century. Yet Teffi’s fleeting humor is always accompanied by a piercing sadness—this is what makes her works truly real. As she put it, “living in a joke isn’t fun; it’s rather tragic.”

In “Nostalgia” there are no historical facts or “clarifications and conclusions.” There are no outstanding individuals, heroes, or villains. The people of “Nostalgia” are ordinary townsfolk—victims of forced circumstances—facing hardships and overcoming them like everyone else. Framed by the burdens of the revolutionary era and resignation before fate, “Nostalgia” is a portrait of personal experiences, aching longing, and, of course, nostalgia: for places, for time, and for unity with oneself.