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[PIONEERS OF THE ARCTIC] My iz Igarki [i.e. We are from Igarka] / the book is written by Arctic pioneers, according to Plan by Maxim Gorky. Edited by Samuil Marshak. Compiled by A. Klimov

Item #2247

Moscow; Leningrad: Izdatelstvo detskoy literatury, 1938. 224 p.: ill. 22,2x17,3 cm. Original cloth binding. Very good condition. Contemporary owner’s inscription on the title page.

First edition. An early example of the children's photo-book on Arctic.
Igarka is a port town in the Russian Arctic, it’s located on the North of Krasnoyarsk region. In the 1930s the region was developed for the needs of the logging industry. Also around that time and up to 1950s, local construction sites widely used prisoners of GULAG for labour, the never finished Trans-arctic railway line has seen substantial construction progress along the 'Igarka-Salekhard' track in those years. It was called ‘the track, built on bones’.
The concept of discussing "their life on the edge of the earth" and delving into the history of their distinctive northern city originated among students from School No. 3 in December 1935. Broadcasting a collective letter from the schoolchildren to Gorky over the radio to Crimea, where the writer was undergoing treatment at the time, resulted in praise for the students' initiative. Acknowledging the harsh natural conditions in which the children lived, Gorky remarked, "There are scarcely any children anywhere on earth who face the same challenges as you do, and there are hardly any children like you. However, through your future endeavors, you will inspire all the children of the earth to become equally proud daredevils."
The book was composed from the short stories by the local pioneers, the names of some of them are given in the preface.
The photos were sourced from the local Siberian photographer S.O. Malobitskiy. The designer’s name is not given, however the photographic endpapers, the positioning of the photos in the book suggest an experienced artist.
The edition was also supervised by the polar explorer Aref Mineev (1900-1972), who spent 5 years in early 1930s as a head of Wrangel island, conducting the development of the local infrastructure.

Karasik. Udarnaya kniga sovetskoy detvory. P. 170.

Worldcat locates copies at NYPL, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, University of Chicago Library, University of Glasgow Library and Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin.

Price: $450.00