Andrei Sobol

Andrei Sobol was a writer, literary translator, poet, and essayist. Born in Saratov, Russia, he lived a turbulent life, arrested for the first time in 1904 for illegal Zionist activities, before escaping Siberia four years later and living in Western Europe. Returning to Russia illegally in 1914, Sobol fell repeatedly in and out of favor with communist authorities, spending several years in prison while later holding a position in the All-Russian Writers Union. His essays, poetry, and prose work often centered on Zionist themes, in addition to sharp critiques of Russian antisemitism, what he saw as Jewish passivity, and other social ills. He translated Sholem Aleichem’s works from Yiddish into Russian. He committed suicide in Moscow.