Kir Bulychev

Kir Bulychev (; 18 October 1934 – 5 September 2003) was a pen name of Igor Vsevolodovich Mozheiko (И́горь Все́володович Може́йко), a Soviet Russian science fiction writer, critic, translator and historian. His magnum opus is a children's science fiction series Alisa Selezneva, although most of his books are adult-oriented. His books were adapted for film, TV, and animation over 20 times – more than any other Russian science fiction author – and Bulychev himself wrote scripts for early adaptations.

Biography

Mozheiko (Mojeiko) received a Master's degree in 1965 and a Ph.D. in 1981. From 1963 he worked in the Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences. He was a specialist in the medieval history of Burma and wrote a biography of Aung San.

He first used the pseudonym Kir Bulychev in 1965, for his very first science fiction story, "A Girl Nothing Can Happen To". It was the first in what would become his most popular book series, Alisa Selezneva, that eventually comprised more than 50 novellas and short stories. This children's science fiction series is centered around the titular heroine, a teenage girl from the future, who travels through space and time, solves mysteries, makes discoveries and saves endangered peoples and species. Bulychov kept writing Alisa for the rest of his life: the last book appeared in 2003, months before his death. There were four animated and three life-action adaptations of Alisa stories, as well as tie-in comics and video games.

Another of Bulychev's best-known works is a series of short stories about Veliky Guslar, a Russian town that attracts all kinds of aliens and supernatural beings. This fictional city is based on the real city of Veliky Ustyug.

He also wrote many standalone science fiction novels.

Bulychev wrote scripts for more than 20 movies: according to Mir Fantastiki magazine, he is the most adapted Russian science fiction author. Besides his own writing, he translated numerous American science fiction stories into Russian.

Selected bibliography

Only novels and novellas included. Alisa Seleznyova series

• Ржавый фельдмаршал (The Rusty Field Marshal, 1968)
• Путешествие Алисы (Alisa's Voyage, 1974)
• День рождения Алисы (Alisa's Birthday, 1974)
• Миллион приключений (A Million Adventures, 1976)
• Сто лет тому вперёд (One Hundred Years Ahead, 1978)
• Пленники астероида (Prisoners of an Asteroid, 1981)
• Лиловый шар (The Lilac Ball, 1983)
• Заповедник сказок (The Reserve of Fairy Tales, 1985)
• Козлик Иван Иванович (Ivan Ivanovich the Goat, 1985)
• Гай-до (Guy-do, 1986)
• Конец Атлантиды (The End of Atlantis, 1987)
• Город без памяти (The City Without Memory, 1988)
• Подземная лодка (The Underground Boat, 1989)
• Война с лилипутами (The War Against the Lilliputians, 1992)
• Алиса и крестоносцы (Alisa and the Crusaders, 1993)
• Излучатель доброты (The Kindness Ray, 1994)
• Дети динозавров (Dinosaur Children, 1995)
• Сыщик Алиса (Alisa the Detective, 1996)
• Привидений не бывает (Ghosts Don't Exist, 1996)
• Опасные сказки (Dangerous Tales, 1997)
• Планета для тиранов (A Planet for Tyrants, 1997)
• Секрет чёрного камня (The Secret of the Black Stone, 1999)
• Алиса и чудовище (Alisa and the Monster, 1999)
• Звёздный пёс (The Star Dog, 2001)
• Вампир Полумракс (Twilights the Vampire, 2001)
• Алиса и Алисия (Alisa and Alicia, 2003)

Veliky Guslar series

• Марсианское зелье (The Martian Potion, 1971)
• Нужна свободная планета (A Free Planet Needed, 1977)
• Глубокоуважаемый микроб (Dear Mr Microbe, 1987)
• Перпендикулярный мир (Perpendicular World, 1989)
• Over 130 short stories, published in seven volumes:
• Чудеса в Гусляре (Miracles in Guslar)
• Пришельцы в Гусляре (Aliens in Guslar)
• Возвращение в Гусляр (Return to Guslar)
• Гусляр-2000 (Guslar-2000)
• Господа гуслярцы (Gentlemen Guslarians)
• Гусляр навеки (Guslar Forever)
• Письма в редакцию (Letters to the Editorial Office)

Doctor Pavlysh series

• Последняя война (The Last War, 1970)
• Великий дух и беглецы (The Great Spirit and the Refugees, 1972)
• Половина жизни (Half a Life, 1973)
• Закон для дракона (A Law for a Dragon, 1975)
• Белое платье Золушки (Cinderella's White Dress, 1980)
• Тринадцать лет пути (Thirteen Years in Flight, 1984)
• Посёлок (The Settlement, 1988, translatad as Those Who Survive)
• Пленники долга (Prisoners of Duty, 2009)

Cora Orvath ("InterGPol") series

• Покушение на Тесея (The Attempted Murder of Theseus, 1994)
• В куриной шкуре (In a Hen's Skin, 1994)
• Предсказатель прошлого (Prophet of the Past, 1994)
• Последние драконы (The Last Dragons, 1994)
• Детский остров (The Children's Island, 1995)
• На полпути с обрыва (Halfway Down the Ridge, 1995)
• Зеркало зла (The Mirror of Evil, 1996)

River Chronos series

• Река Хронос (River Chronos, 1992)
• Заповедник для академиков (The Academicians' Reserve, 1992)
• Усни, красавица (Sleep, Beauty, 1994)
• Купидон (Cupid, 1998)
• Таких не убивают (Those are not to be Killed, 1998)
• Младенец Фрей (Baby Frei, 2000)
• Дом в Лондоне (A House in London, 2003)

Andrey Bruce duology

• Агент КФ (SF Agent, 1984)
• Подземелье ведьм (The Witches' Dungeon, 1987)

Non-serialized

• Умение кидать мяч (A Talent for Throwing Balls, 1973)
• Похищение чародея (Abduction of the Wizard, 1979)
• На днях землетрясение в Лигоне (The Upcoming Earthquake in Ligon, 1980)
• Два билета в Индию (Two Tickets to India, 1981)
• Тайна Урулгана (The Secret of Urulgan, 1991)
• Любимец (A Pet, 1993)
• Театр теней (Theatre of Shadows, 1998)

Books published in English

The dates given are the dates of English editions.

Science fiction:

• Alice: The Girl from Earth (translation of Alisa's Voyage, July 2002),
• Half a Life (1977)
• Gusliar Wonders (1983)
• Earth and Elsewhere (1985)
• Abduction of the Wizard (1989)
• Those Who Survive (translation of The Village, 2000)

History:

• 1185 A.D. (1989)
• South-East Asia: Unity in Diversity. Ahmedabad: Allied (with Gennadi Chufrin) (1989).

Film adaptations

All lifetime adaptations scripts were written by Bulychov himself.

Based on Alisa Selezneva

• The Mystery of the Third Planet (1981), animated, based on Alisa's Voyage
• The Guest from the Future (1985), TV miniseries based on One Hundred Years Ahead
• The Lilac Ball (1987), based on the book of the same name
• Prisoners of Yamagiri-Maru (1988), animated, based on a story of the same name
• Island of Rusty General (1988), based on The Rusty Field Marshal

Posthumous:

• Alice's Birthday (2009), animated, based on the novella of the same name
• Alisa Knows What to Do! (2013), animated TV series, based on characters only
• One Hundred Years Ahead (2024), based on characters from the story of the same name

Other

• The Throw, or Everything Started on Saturday (1976), TV film, based on the story The Ability to Throw Ball
• Abduction of the Wizard (1981), TV film, based on a story of the same name
• Per Aspera Ad Astra (1981), based on an original script by Bulychev
• Tears Were Falling (1982)
• Comet (1983)
• Chance (1984)
• Two Tickets to India (1985), animated, based on a story of the same name
• The Pass (1988), animated, based on Village
• The Witches Cave (1989), based on the novella of the same name
• Abduction of the Wizard (1989), based on a story of the same name

Posthumous:

• ' (2024), loosely based on Guslyar stories. The title is a pun on the Soviet popular science TV program '

External links

• Official website
• Full bibliography (in Russian)
• Alisa and the Guest from the Future Fan Site (in Russian)
• Kir Bulychev: Tale-Teller and Scientist
• Obituary. fossickerbooks.com