“Oh, Tyatya!” My heart hammered as though it would burst between my rib cage, and my head filled up with plans to breed Chara as soon as possible to ensure Zar’s lineage. “I promise not to disappoint you.”
Papa pulled a flask out from the inside pocket of his Cossack jacket, patched and frayed. “In the spirit of Golden Rule Number Two—hope for the best, prepare for the worst.” He took a swill from the flask, and then passed it to Alexander.
Alexander raised the flask and nodded his head to me. “Here’s to selfishly keeping you on the estate to build my dream.”
When he handed me the flask, I put it to my lips and took a sip, just as they had done. As the plum brandy warmed my insides, I felt like I finally belonged.
“I’d like to propose a few changes, too,” I said.
Papa eyed me with suspicion. “One change at a time, Lara.”
I crossed my arms and Zar poked Papa with his long nose.
“She deserves an attentive ear,” Alexander said.
“All right, all right,” Papa said.
I cleared my throat and raised my finger high in the air, as if I were the Tsar. “As long as the future Count agrees, I hereby abolish Golden Rule Number Eight—visions shall no longer be shunned as evil. They’ll be embraced for the gift they are and put to good use.”
“That will take some getting used to,” Papa said.
With an encouraging nod from Alexander, I continued. “As for your silly new Rule, Golden Rule Number Nine. It has to change.” I looked down at Zar. “Anyone with a passion to hunt should be allowed to follow that passion.”
“Let’s toast to that,” Alexander said.
Again, we passed the flask of plum brandy around.
I took a sip, and it suddenly dawned on me. “What about Bohdan, Papa?” It didn’t seem right to rob him of becoming kennel steward.
“When he’s old enough, we’ll ask him if the dogs call to him,” Papa answered. “Who knows? He might take after his mama and prefer a needle and thread.”
“And if he doesn’t?” I asked.
“I suppose we could have two kennel stewards,” Papa answered, looking at Alexander for his reaction. “There’s nothing in the Golden Rules against it.”
“I’m all for it,” Alexander said.
“Did you hear that, Zar?” I asked. “Papa said I could become the next kennel steward. I owe it all to you.”
Zar gave Papa his paw and nudged his elbow.
“He wants to shake on it,” I said.
Papa laughed and shook Zar’s paw.
When we approached the estate, the stable bells rang like a chorus of singing icons, as if the Tsar was expected. Everyone from the kitchen staff to the stable hands hovered at the entrance of the stable doors—even Mama, rocking Bohdan in her arms. Next to her stood Ruslan, waving his arms frantically. Like at Christmastime, the mood was festive and the spirit was high. Papa pulled on the reins and the sleigh came to a stop. Everyone gathered around us, applauding our success.
I pulled out the black box decorated with Zar’s image and raised it high over my head. “It brought us luck!”
“It’s you who brought the luck,” Ruslan said.
“He’s right. Boris told us what happened.” Mama gave me a teary-eyed wink and her wet cheeks glistened under the full moon. “I knew you’d find a way. I’m so proud of you. So is Bohdan. Listen to him coo.”
Zar was first to jump out of the sleigh, his feathery tail wagging, his eyes watching my every move, his feet dancing from paw to paw—waiting for me to join him. No sooner did my feet land on the packed snow than Zar lifted his paw into my hand and then gingerly placed his other paw onto my shoulder. He stood a head or more taller than me. “Whoa, boy! What’s this all about?”
“Zar wants to dance,” Alexander encouraged.
“He sure does,” Ruslan added.
In mirth and wonder, as if I just touched the moon, I twirled Zar around in a fancy waltz. With his long snout he nudged underneath the earflaps of my fur hat and gave my ears tiny bites of affection. Mama and Bohdan joined us—as did Papa with his bear-hug arms wrapped around all of us.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
My first visit to Russia was as a student in 1984 during the Cold War era, shortly before Mikhail Gorbachev became the Soviet premier of the USSR. I am not of Russian descent, but I became fascinated by the Russian culture, people, and arts. I knew I wanted to go back to Russia in some capacity to help foster the relationship between our countries. So I got an MBA in international business, studied the Russian language, and off I went back to Russia in 1989 to work as a consultant for a newly formed Soviet co-op, similar to what we in the United States call a small business.
Because I love dogs, and with the responsibilities of school behind me, I decided to get a Russian dog and opted for a borzoi, what I considered a true Russian breed. I thought I would find plenty of borzoi in the homeland, but that wasn’t the case. Through my struggle finding Dasha, a borzoi pup, I learned the history of Russia. I knew there was a story behind my experience, and that’s when the seed was first planted for Lara’s Gift.
My story idea grew when I met Bonnie Dalzell, an American Kennel Club borzoi judge and breeder, at a coursing event. She gave me a copy of a book called Observations on Borzoi, about the early 1900s travels of a wealthy American, Joseph B. Thomas, and his quest for the perfect borzoi in Russia. He declared the top three Russian borzoi kennels as those belonging to Tsar Nicholas, the Grand Duke Nicolai, and Count Vorontsov. I didn’t think much of it at first, until I bumped into Professor Alexander Woronzoff-Dashkoff, from my days at Smith College studying Russian. He admired Dasha and commented that his great-great-great-uncle used to breed borzoi. And then it clicked. The family names of Woronzoff and Vorontsov were one and the same. I had a million questions for Professor Woronzoff, but it was the questions he couldn’t answer and all the “what-ifs” that made my story idea take off.
There are some things I need to note for you along your reading journey. For the record, the plural of borzoi is borzoi and I have honored this. In my research of Count Vorontsov’s famous borzoi kennel, it was commonly cited in my English sources as Woronzova Kennel, with an a at the end, which most likely reflected the pronunciation to an American ear. However, if translated properly from Russian to English, it probably should have been referred to as Woronzovo Kennel, with an o at the end. In this case, I have used the former spelling, which is what is most often cited in borzoi history sources. I have done my best to accurately portray this time period in history down to the tiniest of details. Although I take full responsibility for any inaccuracies, I have taken some liberties that I have addressed below.
In Russia, it is customary for Russians to address each other using their full name, including their patronymic name, which originates from the father’s first name. Only when Russians are on very familiar terms do they address each other by their first name alone. For the purpose of this story, I have omitted the patronymic name and have used either the first name or the family name to refer to each character. The Russian names I use in the book are those of actual people who lived and worked on the Vorontsov estate in the mid-1800s that I found in a census record.
During the Imperial Era, peasant girls called their fathers Tyatya, which translates to “Daddy” in English. They would not have called their father Papa. This title was reserved for nobility. Whenever Lara addresses her father in speech, I correctly use the term Tyatya. However, to keep things simple, I have used Papa instead of Father throughout to create the kind of tone I wanted for this story. The same scenario applies to Mama. Wherever Lara addresses her mama directly in dialogue, I have used the correct term of Matushka.
Borzoi pups were named by their owners after famous borzoi and from a short list of traditional names. They were not necessarily named by the kennel steward’s daughter. In my story, given Lara’s gift and her special relationship with Alexander, I feel it’s plausible that she would have been given t
he honor. For the most part, the names she did give the pups are names that would have been given at the time this story takes place, with the exception of Ryczar, which means “knight.” An uneducated peasant girl might not have known this word. However, because of her love for Pushkin, I believe a girl like Lara may have been familiar with this word. Because she wants to honor Zar’s mother, Zarya, and because she’s not educated, she shortens it incorrectly to “Zar” instead of “Czar.”
Because Pushkin’s poems are so lyrical, I believe it’s plausible that a girl like Lara could have memorized some of her favorite stanzas. Many of Pushkin’s fairy tales were shared in an oral fashion and passed down from one generation to the next in this manner as well.
Although girls Lara’s age with her social status during the Imperial Era wore colorful scarves over their heads, I chose to give Lara a fur hat because this is how I saw her character.
During the Imperial Era, Russians were known worldwide for the quality of the bells they produced for the church. Russian Orthodox Christians, whether working in the fields during harvesttime or standing inside a church, would listen to the ringing of the bells to follow the various stages of the mass. Because there was an abundance of bells made by the fictional Count Vorontsov’s bell foundry, and because of his kennel’s long history, I have stretched the purpose of the bells beyond their traditional use in the church to serve elsewhere on the grand estate—such as for hunts, births, and finding one’s way home through a snowy blizzard.
At the time my story takes place, only nobility could own borzoi. These dogs were also never sold for money. They were given to friends, often other nobles abroad, as gifts. If a non-noble stole a borzoi or was caught with one, the punishment was severe. Although Lara saves Zar from being culled and treats him as her own, she is fully aware that Zar is the property of the Count.
Although it was not common for a Russian noble to marry or befriend someone beneath their social status, I found enough examples in my research to move forward with the friendship that Alexander and Lara share. Often, these grand estates were isolated from other estates and far from city life, making it convenient for the children of some peasants and nobles to become playmates.
In my research, I also found many examples of abusive husbands, submissive wives, and obedient children among Russian peasant families. I like to think that not all peasant families were like this. Surely, there were exceptions. Nevertheless, I may have taken liberties by giving Lara some pluck and a strong will to work with the borzoi, as well as with her Matushka, by giving her a voice to express her opinions. I kept with tradition, however, in maintaining the father’s role in finding a husband for his daughter.
Dogs were and are not allowed inside a Russian church. Although Lara is fully aware of this and for the most part respectful of the church and its establishment, her love of Zar is so strong, she breaks this well-known rule.
Russians have a rich culture of offering toasts and will often find any reason to celebrate. It is part of their everyday life and is accurately represented throughout Lara’s Gift.
Over the last hundred years, most wolf attacks on humans have involved individual wolves and have been extremely rare. I have taken some liberties in the climax of Lara’s Gift in order to create good fiction. It’s important to note that the wolf has historically been a controversial animal because of livestock losses and human safety, which led to attempts at extermination of wolves around the world. Modern environmental protections and conservation initiatives have supported wolf recovery—many with great success. Today, the biggest threat to wolves is our own human belief systems. How we view the wolf as a large predator through the lens of our own value systems will influence whether or not we will allow wolves to exist into the future. Additionally, how we use the landscape for our own purposes will directly affect whether wolves have a place to exist.
Before you rush out to get a borzoi pup, please do your research to determine if this breed of dog is the right match for your situation. The borzoi is considered a giant breed, with an average height of 28 to 32 inches and an average weight of 60 to 100 pounds. They require exercise and should never be let off a leash in an unfenced area. They are an intelligent and affectionate breed, but are independent and can be stubborn. Borzoi come in a wide variety of colors besides white, cream, gold, and champagne. For a list of standard AKC colors, please see Bonnie Dalzell’s list at borzoi-color.batw.net/quick_color.html. One of my favorite borzoi colors is black. Borzoi are not like most popular breeds of dogs. For more detailed information, please go to borzoiclubofamerica.org.
In borrowing from Kathi Appelt’s wise words of comfort to her animal-loving readers of The Underneath, I want to assure my readers that there were no animals harmed or injured in the writing of Lara’s Gift.
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of Lara’s Gift will be donated to the National Borzoi Rescue Foundation (nbrf.org) to ensure that all borzoi in need find a forever home, and to the International Wolf Center (wolf.org) to advance the survival of wolf populations by teaching about wolves, their relationship to wild lands, and the role of humans in their future.
AFTERWORD
Artemii Vorontsov (Woronzoff), my great-great-great-uncle, loved his daughter Praskovia so much that in her dowry he included Vorontsova (Woronzova), a family estate in the province of Tambov, in central Russia. It was a beautiful place with a tree-lined entrance leading to a large, two-story house. Situated on the high banks of the Tsna River, it was surrounded by a large park with cascading ponds leading to the river below. The estate comprised the stone manor house, a church, outbuildings, greenhouses, stables, the kennels, and other dependencies.
Praskovia gave the estate to her daughter Elizabeth, and it was Elizabeth’s son, Artemii Boldyrev (named for his great-grandfather Artemii Vorontsov), who bred at Vorontsova the famous line of magnificent white borzoi. Artemii’s wife, Maria, also took a keen interest in the dogs. She was an excellent horsewoman and often participated in the hunt.
Today, only the park remains. The estate has disappeared and so have its owners, victims of revolutions, wars, and the great political and social changes in Russia during the twentieth century. A small museum in the neighboring village of Vorontsovka preserves the memory of the families and dogs that once lived there.
In Lara’s Gift, Annemarie O’Brien also preserves the past by submerging us in a time and place that is now gone but that holds us captive by its beauty and elegance, as well as its contradictions and inequalities. She vividly reconstructs everyday estate life—the echoes of distant church bells, the sounding of the horn, the stark cruelty of the hunt, and the joys and pain of birth. But most of all, she presents us with a young girl’s strength, perseverance, and enduring love for her dog.
Alexander Woronzoff-Dashkoff
Professor of Russian
Smith College
GLOSSARY
All foreign words are in Russian unless otherwise noted.
ALMAZ: Diamond
BABOCHKA: Butterfly
BABUSHKA: Grandmother
BISTRI: Quick
BLINI: Russian pancakes
BOHDAN: Russian name for a male meaning “gift from God”
BOLSHOE SPASIBO: A big thanks
BOREI: North wind
BORSCHT: Beet and cabbage soup
BRONYA: Armor
BURAN: Snowstorm
BUYAN: Rebel
CHAI: Tea
CHARA: Charm, enchantment
CHONG RAHMAT: Kyrgyz for “a big thanks”
DAVAI!: Come on! Let’s go!
DOBRAYA: Kind
DOROGAYA: Good one
DOROGUSHA: Very good one
GOSPODI: Oh my God
J’AIME CES CHIENS PLUS QUE TOUT: French for “I love these dogs more than anything.”
KASHA: Porridge
KNOUT: A whip with a lash of leather thongs
KOPECK: Russian form of currency in which 100 kopecks amount
s to 1 ruble
KOROTYSHKA: Runt
LAROCHKA: A diminutive form of Lara, which comes from the name Larissa and means “protection”
LOVKIY: Expert
MAHALO: Hawaiian for “thank you”
MATUSHKA: Mommy, the term a peasant girl like Lara would use to address her mother
MOLODIETZ!: Good job!
NYET: No
OCHEN BOLSHOE SPASIBO: A big thanks
OI: Ouch
PEI DO DNA!: Bottoms up!
POZHALUISTA: Please
RADUGA: Rainbow
RASPUTIN: Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin (1869–1916) was a Russian mystic who was suspected of having undue influence over the last Tsar, Nicholas II; his wife, Alexandra; and their only son, Alexei. There is much controversy over Rasputin. He was called a “psychic” and the “Mad Monk,” a “strannik” (religious pilgrim) and even a “starets” (elder). The royal family brought him into their circle to help them heal their son, Alexei, who had hemophilia. It has been argued that Rasputin helped to discredit the Tsarist government, leading to the fall of the Romanov dynasty in 1917. He was sent into and out of exile from 1909 until his death.
ROSSAK: Gray hare
RUBLE: The basic monetary unit of Russia, equal to 100 kopecks
RYCZAR: Knight
RYSS: Lynx
SASHA: A diminutive form of Alexander
SEMPER IMMOTA FIDES: Latin for “Always Steadfast Loyalty”
SHAIKA: Bandit tribe
SILA: Force
SKORAYA: Rapid
SNIGURKA: Snow maiden
SOSKA: Baby pacifier made of rags
SPASIBO: Thank you
TARAN: Battering ram
TYATYA: Daddy, the term a peasant girl like Lara would use to address her father
UMNITZA: Clever one
VERST: One verst equals 0.66 miles or 1.067 kilometers
VLAST: Power
VOLAN: Kite
ZANOZA: Splinter, thorn in one’s flesh, sweetheart (also the name of one of Alfred A. Knopf’s borzoi)
Lara's Gift Page 12