Aleksey Varlamov is a writer, philologist, author of a few books in the ZHZL series (Lives of Remarkable People): those about Andrey Platonov and Mikhail Bulgakov, Aleksey Tolstoy and Mikhail Prishvin and others. Varlamov is a professor at MSU (Moscow State University) and the rector of the Gorky institute of Literature and Creative Writing. He used to lecture on the Russian literature at universities in Europe and the USA. Aleksey Nikolaevich is a winner  of several awards in literature and art, including Alexander Solzhenitsyn Literary Award and Big Book Prize. His books are translated into French, German, Spanish,  Italian, Chinese, Polish, Serbian, Vietnamese and other languages.

Presentation of the biography of Michail Bulgakov

There are writers in Russian literature who own their fate and those who are possessed by fate. Mikhail Bulgakov is one of the latter group. Everything in his existence was continuous, meaningful, doomed to defeat in life and led to a brilliant victory in literature through the duel with Fate.

What is to be done with a person, how to reward him with a gift, through which ups and downs, trials and temptations to lead, how to weave a life story, what friends , enemies and amazing women to give him to write "The White Guard", "Heart of a Dog", "A Theatrical Novel", "Flight", "The Cabal of Hypocrites", "The Master and Margarita"? 

Alexey Varlamov offers his version of the fate of the writer, whose books throughout many decades have caused admiration, indignation, fierce debate, love and doubt, but leave few people indifferent and have undoubted, steady success all over the world.