Irina Tokmakova

Irina Petrovna Tokmakova (née Manukova, 3 March 1929 — 5 April 2018) was a Soviet and Russian writer of children's books, a poet, playwright, and a translator of classic children's literature into Russian. Her translations of Tove Jansson, Astrid Lindgren and Kenneth Grahame's works were particularly renowned. She was a laureate of the State Prize of the Russian Federation for children's literature, and the Alexander Grin literary prize.

Life Irina Tokmakova was born in Moscow to Perch Manukian (an Armenian, whose Russified name was Pyotr Manukov), an electrical engineer, and Lidia Diligenskaya, a paediatrician at a local orphanage. She had been writing poetry from her childhood onwards, but feeling that she lacked a literary talent, she decided to take up a career in languages. In 1953, she graduated from the philological department of the Moscow State University. She then entered a postgraduate programme in general and comparative linguistics, and began to work as an interpreter.

The writers Samuil Marshak and Agniya Barto saw Tokmakova's works in Murzilka and encouraged her to write and publish more. Subsequently, Leo Tokmakov illustrated many of their books.

Tokmakova was able to travel abroad to attend international seminars and conferences on children's literature. She was a juror for the Hans Christian Andersen Award.

Selected works Own writings

Translations From English

From Swedish

From Uzbek