Утро

A comprehensible story for learners of Russian

Ebook

by Michele Whaley

Cover illustration by Zangar Beisembinov

Lena and Arsen come from opposite sides of the Soviet Union, yet they have a similar problem: their parents want to guide their lives. In fact, everyone around them interferes with their blossoming happiness as Lena and Arsen struggle to find their own path in life.

A comprehensible story for learners of Russian, Level 2 / CEFR level A2

This book contains a comprehensive Russian-English glossary. Words that may be new to the Level 2/A2 reader are in bold and have a footnote number to make reading and comprehension easier. Clicking these words takes you to a list where you'll find the translation next to the footnote number. Click on the same number to return to the text to make reading and comprehension easier. Furthermore, you will repeatedly encounter each of these new words throughout the text, which will help you recognize and understand them more quickly each time. This text is carefully crafted to build your confidence and joy while reading in Russian!

A painting called Утро hangs in the Tretyakov Gallery of Art in Moscow. It is one of the most famous paintings in Russia. The painting plays an important role in this story, which is based on the lives of two real people: the girl pictured in the painting and a boy from Kazakhstan.

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I wrote this book for low intermediate students of Russian. May the beauty of the Russian language and insights into those who speak Russian open the way to new friendships and communication across borders.

— Michele Whaley

Утро

A comprehensible story for learners of Russian

Ebook first edition 2021

Author: Michele Whaley

Editors: Zarina Kim, Victoria Maximova and Kirstin Plante

Illustrations: Scott Clendaniel

Cover art: Zangar Beisembinov

Design: Arcos Publishers

Arcos Publishers

Molengouw 36

1151 CJ Broek in Waterland

The Netherlands

info@arcospublishers.com

www.arcospublishers.com

NUR-code: 630

ISBN Ebook: 978-94-90824-68-6

BISAC: ART049000, FOR021000, FAM029000, YAF058190

Keywords: language learning, Russian language, true story

Illustrations © 2021 Scott Clendaniel

Text © 2021 Michele Whaley

Publication © 2021 Arcos Publishers

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. No teaching materials or other additional materials for this book may be published or sold without the express permission of the publisher.

Contents

Жизнь прожить – не поле перейти.

Living is not as easy as crossing a field.

Глава один

Ничего

Арсен

25-ое мая¹, 1957 год

Дома. Алматы, Казахстан

Арсен смотрит на свою девушку². Он очень любит эту девушку.

— Я тебя люблю, — Арсен говорит ей³,