Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852) was a pre-eminent Ukrainian-born story writer. He is particularly famous for those stories which veer in the direction of surrealism and the grotesque. The Nose is a classic example of this genre. The story opens with the barber, Ivan Yakovlevitch at breakfast. Things take an odd turn when Yakovlevitch finds a disembodied nose hidden in his bread roll. Yakovlevitch is at pains to rid himself as quickly as he can of the nose, which he recognizes as belonging to one of his clients, Major Kovalev. Kovalev, on the other hand, awakes to find his nose missing and leaves no stone unturned in trying to track the missing organ down....with each twist of the tale, the story gets odder and odder as the nose develops a life and personality of its own. Gogol at his surrealist best!
