Aleksandr Skorobogatov

Aleksandr Viktorovich Skorobogatov (Belarusian: Аляксандр Віктаравіч Скарабагатаў, Russian: Александр Викторович Скоробогатов, born 11 August 1963) is a Belarusian-born Russophone writer and journalist based in Antwerp, Belgium. He is regarded as one of the most important contemporary Russophone authors and one of the most original voices in the post-communist Russian literary tradition, known for his surreal, psychologically intense, and often dark narratives. His recent work, particularly Warchronicles and his columns, also positions him as an incisive commentator on contemporary political events, especially the Russo-Ukrainian War, and as a public intellectual engaging with complex moral and historical questions. In September 2025 he published the Dutch-language novel Achter de donkere wouden (English title: Through the Dark Woods), published by De Geus. The novel is narrated in the second person, as a father addressing his murdered son, and draws on real events surrounding the kidnapping and murder of the author's fifteen-year-old son near Moscow in 2002.

Early life and education Skorobogatov was born in 1963 in Grodno, then part of the Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union. From an early age, he aspired to be a writer, but his early literary efforts in Soviet Belarus were deemed "ideologically unacceptable," preventing official publication and compelling him towards independent writing until the political climate changed. He has collaborated closely with Dutch translator Rosemie Vermeulen. especially on themes such as war, dictatorship, and moral responsibility.

His 2023 book Warchronicles (Dutch: Oorlogskronieken) compiles these writings. This collection, spurred initially by the 2020 Belarusian protests and intensifying with the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, serves as a passionate indictment of the Belarusian and Russian regimes and a critique of Western responses. Professor Martin Kohlrausch, in his laudatio for Skorobogatov's KU Leuven Honorary Medal, described him as occupying "a unique position as historian of this time," whose journalistic work raises profound moral and existential questions about engagement and responsibility, often focusing on the plight of the ordinary, vulnerable individual. Skorobogatov has been an outspoken critic of the Russian government, particularly following the invasion of Ukraine, stating he wants nothing to do with "this Russia." His universe is often depicted as dark, bleak, and violent, populated by malevolent villains and naive fools, where even love is passionate, illusory, and often destructive. His work masterfully blends deep literary knowledge, especially of Russian classics, with experimental storytelling.

Common elements in his fictional work include: Unreliable narrators Surrealism and absurdism Social critique Audiëntie bij de vorst – 1994 (Dutch; Audience with the Prince) Aarde zonder water – 2002 (Dutch; Earth Without Water) Portret van een onbekend meisje – 2015 (Dutch; Portrait of an Unknown Girl) Cocaïne – 2017 (Dutch; Cocaine) De wasbeer – 2020 (Dutch; The Raccoon) Warchronicles (Dutch: Oorlogskronieken) – 2023 Through the Dark Woods (Dutch: Achter de donkere wouden) – September 2025

His works have been translated into numerous languages, including Dutch, English, French, Italian, Greek, Spanish, Danish, Croatian, Russian, and Serbian. The availability of his work in translation, particularly in Dutch through his collaboration with Rosemie Vermeulen, has been crucial to his international presence, with Dutch versions sometimes preceding the Russian book publications. 2012: Medal of the President of the Italian Republic The medal, conferred in March 2025, recognized Skorobogatov's "exceptional service to society," The laudations by Professors Pieter Boulogne and Martin Kohlrausch highlighted his unique literary voice, the importance of translation in his work's circulation, his role as a "historian of this time," and his commitment to raising crucial moral and existential questions. Publishers Weekly noted it “sketches a chilling portrait of PTSD” using gothic conventions. The New York Times lauded the book as “a fevered, lucid descent into madness,” placing Skorobogatov among “the great poets of delirium and madness” in the Russian literary tradition. and France's Le Figaro wrote that Russian Gothic had earned its author “a place in the grand Russian tradition.”

Cocaïne Cocaïne (2017, Cocaine) was characterized as an "absurdist literary rollercoaster" that celebrates the power of imagination, engaging the reader in a complex interplay between author, protagonist, and a phantasmagorical Moscow.

De wasbeer The satirical novel De wasbeer (2020; The Raccoon) surprised many readers with its unexpected tenderness and comic tone, Professor Pieter Boulogne noted that with this novel, Skorobogatov "completely reinvented himself."

In De Tijd, Jan Dertaelen described the novel as a “devastatingly beautiful elegy for a murdered son”. In De Volkskrant, Olaf Koens wrote that the author “builds a magnificent monument” to his murdered son. On VRT, Bent van Looy described it as “heart-wrenching, deeply human, and beautiful”, while Bart Schols called it “a magnificent work, in all its tristesse”.

Personal life Skorobogatov has lived in Antwerp since 1992.