Translated into English by Andrew Bromfield, the book features original Russian pictures by Evgeny Migunov from the first edition of Monday in 1964. It's also the Russian precursor for Harry Potter.

"My reasons for wanting to translate this book (as well as other books which Seagull Publishing produced) were very simple," says Natasha Hull, head honcho at Seagull Publishing. "Since I arrived in the UK, 10 years ago, I've discovered that there is a certain image of Russia and the Russians in the popular Western mentality which was very far from reality. Basically, what people knew here about Russia could be described in four words: vodka, sputnik, Perestroika, mafia. I thought it was quite sad and decided to do something about it.

"Monday Starts on Saturday was the obvious choice: first, it's one of my favourite books ever, the one which in a way made me who I am, since I read it as a young teenager. Second - the overwhelming success of Harry Potter proved that people here are interested in the subject of magic, so I wouldn't at least look mad by publishing it (which is always good news).

"In Monday magic is happening in a solid real material world, scientific research institute, which is described with the same convincing truthfulness as Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The main characters are young adults rather than kids - which also makes it, in a way, a predecessor of the Terry Pratchett's Unseen University. (Sorry Terry, can't be helped - Monday was written 40 years earlier.)

"The book carries behind its scenes of miracles an important social message. In Russia in the 60s it had the same impact on the young generation's mentality as Harry Potter does here. In fact, it is the teenagers that enjoyed reading Monday Starts on Saturday and other Strugatsky's books in the 60s who made the Perestroika happen in the 80s. In a very real way, the fall of Communism in Russia is a result of the fun people were having reading a fantasy novel (well, not only that, of course - there were other reasons, I admit, like desperate political and economical situation. But the lessons of intellectual freedom left their trace)."

Hull wasn't the only person who thought the book was worthy of publishing. "The project was sponsored by the Arts Council England," she said. "They considered it beneficial for the better mutual understanding between Russia and the English-speaking world, aimed to breaking the barriers created by the politicians during the Cold War in order to manipulate people's fears and hatred."

Monday Starts on Saturday is available now. For ordering information, check out the Seagull Publishing website.

Source: Natasha Hull

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