Publisher's abstract: Book by Doctor of Philology R.S. Katz covers more than seven decades of the history of Soviet science fiction literature (1921–1993). The author offers his own, original interpretation of a number of problems of the genesis and development of science fiction in the USSR. The unconventional approach to the material under study and the popular nature of the presentation make this monograph not only useful, but also fascinating reading. Disclaimer: The Gursky game was not the first hoax of Roman Arbitman. In the early 90s, Rustam Katz’s monograph “The History of Soviet Science Fiction” gained wide popularity in narrow circles. The modest brochure, printed at a rotaprint in Saratov, consisted of biographies of fictional writers and descriptions of their never-written books. Katz parodied the traditional style research monograph, offering the key to understanding the Soviet period of Russian history. Yes, all domestic rulers and general secretaries of the last century were obsessed with the idea of colonizing the Moon. “The History of Soviet Fiction” was a great success... Reader reviews: A funny example of alternative literary criticism. The first edition was published by the Saratov University Publishing House and was accepted as a real scientific work on the history of Soviet literature. You need to be an expert in the real history of Soviet science fiction to understand all the intricacies of the author's fantasy. And you need to be a connoisseur of modern science fiction to understand which of the current authors Dr. Katz crossed with their historical predecessors and why he settled on these pairs. Unfortunately, the author often cheats sense of tact, especially when it comes to dates of death of living people. Sawwin | 2008-03-13 The History of Soviet Science Fiction by Dr. Kats This year marks ten years since the publication of “The History of Soviet Science Fiction” by Dr. Rustam Svyatoslavovich Katz. The malicious “alternative” parody, in which SF in the USSR occupies a niche occupied in our reality by socialist realism, the epic story of the conquest of the Moon by Soviet science fiction writers, caused a mixed reaction among science fiction fans, to put it mildly. Some shrugged their shoulders in bewilderment, others reproached the author for senseless mockery of our heroic past, others rushed to congratulate him on the original development of postmodernist discourse... The writer, who hid under the pseudonym “R.S.,” could not be blamed for one thing. Katz": the book was not written less convincing than most works devoted to the real history of Soviet science fiction. There are cases when people quite competent in their fields took this hoax at face value... Three of the highest awards in Russian science fiction (Bronze Snail, Interpresscon and Wanderer) secured the status of an exemplary work for "History..." - although The very fact of its inclusion in the “Criticism, Journalism” nomination caused many “fandom activists” to be understandably surprised. They often say: “time will judge us.” Well, time has passed. Reasoned. Not an era, of course, has passed, only ten years, but also a wow time. Especially for the current generation. And no matter how we feel about Katz’s work, we have to admit: after these years, literally packed with discoveries, “The History of Soviet Science Fiction” still remains the brightest hoax in our science fiction studies. Those who consider this book to be literary hoax are more mistaken than those who consider it a serious literary study. It's neither one nor the other. It's more like an epic. The scale of events and their length in time are epic, the deeds are epic, the heroes are epic... and, of course, the main character is Stepan Petrovich Kurguzov. S. Berezhnoy: < /p>