Isidor Chagin can memorize text of any complexity and retain it in his memory for as long as he wishes. His phenomenal abilities prove a severe test for the hero, as Chagin is deprived of the simple human joy of forgetting. Everything he touches becomes literally unforgettable.

Every great gift is a violation of harmony. Memory requires oblivion, speech requires silence, and fiction requires reality. In life, they are intertwined as tightly as the tragic and comic in the novels of Yevgeny Vodolazkin. The novel 'Chagin' is no exception. His characters include Heinrich Schliemann and Daniel Defoe, secret agents, archivists, and a master of ceremonies, as well as his distinctive writing style—as always, one of the writer's main characters.

Evgeny Vodolazkin is the author of the novels 'Laurus,' 'The Aviator,' 'Soloviev and Larionov,' 'Brisbane,' 'Justification of the Island,' and the short fiction collections 'Walk Undaunted' and 'The Instrument of Language.' He is a winner of the 'Big Book,' 'Yasnaya Polyana,' and 'Book of the Year' awards. His books have been translated into many languages.