Tiit Aleksejev

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Tiit Aleksejev (2018)

Tiit Aleksejev (born July 6, 1968 in Kohtla-Järve ) is an Estonian historian , diplomat and writer .

Life

Tiit Aleksejev graduated from high school in Elva in 1986 and then studied history at the University of Tartu . After graduating in 1992, he studied for a year in Oxford within the "Foreign Service Program" and then worked from 1993 to 1999 as a lecturer at the University of Tartu. There he defended his master's thesis in 1997. From 1999 to 2003 he worked in the diplomatic service at the Estonian Embassy in Paris , from 2003 to 2006 he worked at the Estonian EU Representation in Brussels .

Tiit Aleksejev has been a member of the Estonian Writers 'Association since 2006 and a member of the Board of Directors of the European Writers' Council since 2015 . He lives as a freelance writer in Tallinn and has been chairman of the Estonian Writers' Union since 2016.

plant

Tiit Aleksejev's first story was published in 1999 in the Estonian literary magazine Looming , his book debut followed in 2006. The novel The White Kingdom , which won the Betti Alver debut prize, combines the author's diplomatic and historical interests and can be characterized as a spy thriller set in Paris although his strength "lies in the author's ability to give astute analyzes of human nature and the genius loci ."

The author achieved his greatest success to date with the novel Pilgrimage , which was awarded the European Union Prize for Literature . It provides a description of the First Crusade from the perspective of a Toulouse knight and comes up with many detailed descriptions that are often ignored or ignored by conventional historiography. Particularly noteworthy is the psychological representation in which the pilgrimage becomes a “symbol of the personal struggle for life”. Another reviewer simply gave his review the title “Journey into the Heart of Darkness”, and the review also made comparisons with masters of the historical genre such as Mika Waltari or Karl Ristikivi . The novel has now been translated into Hungarian (2012), Bulgarian (2013), Finnish (2013), Italian (2013), Latvian (2013) and Czech (2017).

In his other works, too, the author takes on themes from Estonian history, to which he adds new facets, because “where the historian puts down his pen ..., the writer's hour strikes”. In this respect, his work is comparable to that of Ene Mihkelson or Sofi Oksanen .

Awards

bibliography

  • Valge kuningriik ('The White Kingdom'). Tallinn: Varrak 2006. 197 pp.
  • Palverand Lugu esimesest ristisõjast ('Pilgrimage. Tale of the First Crusade'). Tallinn: Varrak 2008. 308 pp.
  • Leegionärid ('The Legionaries'; play). Tallinn: SA Kultuurileht 2010. 56 p. (Loomingu Raamatukogu 20/2010)
  • Kindel linn ('A strong castle'). Tallinn: Varrak 2011. 205 pp.
  • Kuningad. Näidend aastast 1343 ('The Kings. Drama from the year 1343'). Tallinn: SA Kultuurileht 2014. 73 p. (LR 1/2014)

Secondary literature

  • Jan Kaus : Psühholoogilise kirjutuse lävepakul, in: Looming 9/2006, pp. 1417–1423.
  • Tõnu Õnnepalu : Diplomaatilized kõhklused, in: Vikerkaar 9/2006, pp. 105–108.
  • Tõnu Õnnepalu: Mõtteränd maisesse Jeruusalemma, in: Looming 3/2009, pp. 436–439.
  • Toomas Paul: Teekond pimeduse südamesse, in Keel ja Kirjandus 4/2009, pp. 286–290.
  • Meelis Friedenthal : Palveränd iseenda juurde, in: Vikerkaar 4–5 / 2009, pp. 168–171.
  • Linda Kaljundi: The Historian Who Came in from the Cold, in Estonian Literary Magazine 30 (2010), pp. 8-14.
  • Peeter Helme : Varjude vabastamise kunst, in: Keel ja Kirjandus 10/2010, pp. 770–772.
  • Andrei Hvostov : Lugu kadunud linnast ja selle taastajast, samuti kadunust, in: Looming 11/2010, pp. 1602–1605.
  • Urmas Vadi : Eesti sõjameeste vaimud tühjal väljal, in: Vikerkaar 1–2 / 2011, pp. 188–192.
  • Holger Kaints : Rahvusromantilized kuningad aastal 1343, in: Looming 9/2014, pp. 1335-1337.

Web links

  • [1] , English and Estonian-language website of the Center for Estonian Literature Information

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Estonian Literary Magazine 23 (2006), p. 44.
  2. ↑ Tõnu Õnnepalu: Mõtteränd maisesse Jeruusalemma, in: Looming 3/2009, p. 438.
  3. ↑ Toomas Paul: Teekond pimeduse südamesse in Keel ja Kirjandus 4/2009, S. 286th
  4. ↑ Meelis Friedenthal: Palveränd iseenda juurde, in: Vikerkaar 4-5 / 2009, p. 171.
  5. ↑ Andrei Hvostov: Lugu kadunud linnast ja selle taastajast, samuti kadunust, in: Looming 11/2010, p. 1603.
  6. ↑ Urmas Vadi: Eesti sõjameeste vaimud tühjal väljal, in: Vikerkaar 1-2 / 2011, p. 189.
personal data
SURNAME Aleksejev, Tiit
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Estonian writer
DATE OF BIRTH July 6, 1968
PLACE OF BIRTH Kohtla-Järve