The house and the island, or language Tool

Evgeny Vodolazkin (b. 1964) – philologist, author of works on ancient literature and prose writer, author of novels "Laurel" (the award "Big book" and "Yasnaya Polyana", the short list of award "national bestseller" and "Russian Booker") and "nightingales and Larionov" (shortlisted for the award "Big book" and the Award of Andrei Bely).
The reaction of linguists to the fellow, taking up literary work, often akin to the reaction of the doctors for a sick colleague: just stood at the operating table and, please, already. And still "to be an ichthyologist and fish at the same time" - is not only permissible, but useful, and proves that the book "the House and the island, or the Tool of language." Short, witty sketches of the lives of scientists, the memories of people close to the author, essays and sketches - something from Pushkin's "table-talk" and records by Yury Olesha - like: the boundary between human and text is not as strong as it may sometimes seem.