Katya Apekina

Katya Apekina is a Russian-American novelist and translator.

Life

Apekina was born in Moscow into a family of refuseniks.[1] They moved to the United States when Apekina was three. She grew up in Greater Boston.[2] She attended Columbia University and Washington University in St Louis for her Master of Fine Arts. She now teaches at Antioch University Los Angeles.[3][4][5] She has a daughter.[6]

Work

Apekina's debut novel The Deeper The Water The Uglier The Fish was published by Two Dollar Radio in 2018.[7] It was a finalist for the 2018 Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the First Novelist Award, and shortlisted for the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing.[8][9][10] Her sophomore novel, Mother Doll, was published in 2024.[11][12]

She has published short fiction in Alaska Quarterly Review, The Iowa Review, and Joyland.[13][14][15] Her work is influenced by the work of Nadezhda Teffi and Marina Tsvetaeva.[16]

She has translated poetry and prose for a Farrar, Straus and Giroux compendium of Vladimir Mayakovsky's work.[17] She also writes nonfiction for Electric Literature.[18]

References

  1. ^ Robbins, Emily (18 Mar 2024). "Carrying the Story: A Conversation with Katya Apekina on "Mother Doll"". Chicago Review of Books. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  2. ^ Giardina, Elena (18 March 2024). "Katya Apekina reconsidered her early experience as a Russian immigrant in writing her novel 'Mother Doll'". Boston Globe. Boston Globe Media Partners. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  3. ^ Mayo, Giuliana (26 April 2024). "On how family informs the creative process". The Creative Independent. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  4. ^ "Katya Apekina". antioch.edu. Antioch University. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  5. ^ "The Deeper The Water The Uglier The Fish A Novel By Katya Apekina". Two Dollar Radio. Two Dollar Radio. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  6. ^ Hunter, Lindsay (12 Mar 2024). "Katya Apekina on Talking to Ghosts". Literary Hub. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  7. ^ Schaub, Michael (26 September 2018). "'The Deeper The Water The Uglier The Fish' Is A Darkly Beautiful Debut". npr.org. National Public Radio. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  8. ^ "Katya Apekina". antioch.edu. Antioch University. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  9. ^ "The Deeper The Water The Uglier The Fish A Novel By Katya Apekina". Two Dollar Radio. Two Dollar Radio. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  10. ^ Schaub, Michael (20 Feb 2019). "L.A. Times Book Prize finalists include Michelle Obama and Susan Orlean; Terry Tempest Williams receives lifetime achievement award". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  11. ^ Dennis, Chris (3 Apr 2024). "Katya Apekina's 'Mother Doll' Is an L.A. Novel Where the Dead Get to Speak". Jezebel. Paste. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  12. ^ Robbins, Emily (18 Mar 2024). "Carrying the Story: A Conversation with Katya Apekina on "Mother Doll"". Chicago Review of Books. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  13. ^ Apekina, Katya (7 Mar 2024). "Help Me, You're Bleeding". Joyland. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  14. ^ Apekina, Katya (2012). "Maureen and Marjorie". The Iowa Review. 42 (1). Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  15. ^ Apekina, Katya (2020). "The Party". Alaska Quarterly Review. 36 (3 & 4). Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  16. ^ Giardina, Elena (18 March 2024). "Katya Apekina reconsidered her early experience as a Russian immigrant in writing her novel 'Mother Doll'". Boston Globe. Boston Globe Media Partners. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  17. ^ "Katya Apekina". PEN America. PEN. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  18. ^ Apekina, Katya (29 Oct 2018). "Is Russia a Terrible Country?". Electric Literature. Retrieved 17 May 2025.