Miriam Anisimov. Romain Gary, the Chameleon

Romain Gary (Roman Kasev, Fosco Sinibaldi, Shaitan Bogat, Émile Ajar) is a unique literary figure. He is the only person to have won the Prix Goncourt twice, and for this, the world began talking about him. Russian readers first encountered his work in 1983, through Émile Ajar's novel "The Life Ahead." In the preface, the writer introduced himself as the son of a "Moscow actress" who took him away from Russia in 1921. Legends circulated about Gary, which he himself presented to readers in his works, playing with facts like a fakir.

This book reveals for the first time the truth about the life of the great hoaxer: here he is a writer, screenwriter, diplomat, pilot, member of the Resistance movement... and a passionate lover, whom many women dreamed of.

This biographical novel will satisfy any reader: the variety of genres and intrigue are often on par with the author's own novels, and many facts will compel one to take a fresh look at Gary-Azhar's well-known works and reread them.