Kolyma Tales

Kolyma Tales is a collection of short stories by Varlam Shalamov. He worked on the book while in a Russian labor camp between 1954 and 1973. An early version of the book was published in the United States in 1966, and the completed version was published in 1976. None of the stories were published in Russia until 1978. The final collection contains 24 stories about life in the Gulag. Some of them are as follows:

A Pushover Job: A gang of prisoners uses the needles of a Siberian dwarf cedar tree to make a medicine that protects against scurvy. The narrator knows the medicine does not work. However, he likes the job because it is easier than digging for gold.

In the Night: Two prisoners named Glebov and Bagretsov sneak out in the night to rob the grave of a prisoner who died that day. They steal the prisoner’s underwear and make off with it, hoping to sell it for some food.



Shock Therapy: Merzlakov is a large prisoner who does not get enough to eat. He tries several tricks to get more food, but is always caught and exposed by other prisoners who know his tricks. He finally conceives of a trick to remain hospitalized indefinitely, but a doctor who used to be a prisoner torments Merzlakov until he checks out.

In the Bathhouse: The bathhouse is a trial for the prisoners since it cuts into the little time they have to rest. Even in winter, the water is not warm enough. Since the barracks are cleaned while the prisoners are out, their belongings are often stolen while they are away, as well.

Carpenters: Potashnikov lies and says he is a carpenter even though he is not. As a result, he is allowed into the camp workshop where he is able to escape the cold. The foreman soon realizes he is not a real carpenter, but he allows Potashnikov to continue until the weather is warmer.



Dry Rations: Several prisoners are sent out into the woods to clear debris from a road. The assignment is a vacation from life in the camp, and on the evening before the men have to return, one of them kills himself and another cuts off several fingers to injure himself.

Sententious: The narrator is very ill and thinks he will die. However, his condition begins to improve because he is no longer in the Gulag. He is now in exile and has access to better food and amenities. As he begins to recover, there is a feeling of hopefulness in the air.

My First Tooth: Sazanov is a prisoner under the chief of guards Sherbakov. One day, Sherbakov orders a prisoner named Zayats beaten for not standing at attention. Sazanov objects to the beating, and Sherbakov tortures him until he is too scared to complain. The author offers two potential endings to this story. In the first, Sazanov is promoted over Sherbakov, and in the other, Zayats becomes a broken man in the camp.



The Lawyer’s Plot: A prisoner who used to be a law student named Andreev is accused of taking part in a conspiracy masterminded by lawyers. He is moved between several prisons and finally learns that the supposed conspiracy was the work of a single man who tried to get a lawyer friend of his pardoned from one of the camps. Once the conspiracy is uncovered, Andreev is returned to his camp, well-fed and rested.

Lend-Lease: Relief gifts from the United States reach the camps. Most of the goods are looted, but some food rations and other items make it through to the prisoners. Large equipment is volunteered to move corpses from shallow graves to deeper ones. Though some of the bodies are from 1938, they are still preserved because of the permafrost.

Condensed Milk: A camp geologist named Shestakov asks another prisoner who works in the mine to help him escape. The miner knows that escape is impossible, but agrees to help in exchange for two cans of condensed milk. Shestakov escapes with several other prisoners. They are quickly recaptured and two are killed. Shestakov is tried, but ultimately allowed to return to his old job.



Esperanto: The narrator works with a prisoner named Skoroseev who reports the narrator to the authorities for an off-hand remark. The narrator is punished with more work duty, where he learns that Skoroseev used to be a government informer when he was a civilian. The narrator meets Skoroseev again after his release from prison. Skoroseev acts friendly towards him, but then charges the narrator for spending the night in his house.

The Train: The narrator finally has leave to return to Moscow from Kolyma. In this story, he describes the various other people who are traveling with him, including a young man who was turned into a criminal by the camps, and a father and son who are leaving the child’s mother behind in Siberia.