Boris Shergin (1893–1973) was a major Russian storyteller, a collector of folklore, and an artist often called the “Arkhangelsk Bazhov.” He was a rare connoisseur and virtuoso of words, raised from the traditions of folk culture of the Russian North. Placing the craft of the storyteller at the forefront, Shergin became famous for literary adaptations of old fairy tales and epics—astonishingly lyrical narratives about Pomors and northern seafarers, about “sea service,” and the strict beauty of the northern land. With special precision and warm attention, he conveys the way of life, the atmosphere, and the dialect colors of his native region.
The breadth of his talent is especially evident in “Northern Heart.” Here, solemnly-sad “old tales” coexist with a dense verbal whirlwind of grotesque adventures and a subtle psychological intonation of “old-town” romance. Even for those who haven’t encountered these tales and epics yet—stories of delicate masters, feeding-rulers, sons-robber heroes, and the fox-confessor—Shergin’s cartoons are familiar from childhood: “Gilded Foreheads,” “The Magic Ring,” “Ivan Datsky,” “About Yersh Yershovich,” and others. They were voiced by Oleg Tabakov, Yevgeny Leonov, Leonid Kuravlyov, Lev Durov, and the music was composed by Eduard Artemyev, Vladimir Martynov, Vladimir Dashkevich.
The postscript to the collection is by Yuri Koval.