"Old Man Hottabych" tells how a powerful sorcerer from Arab mythology finds himself in the Soviet state and gets acquainted with the realities of the 1930s. You can find out what came of this from this article.

Getting to know the genie

The book begins with the fact that a simple Soviet schoolboy Vladimir Kostylkov, swimming in the lake, finds an ancient jug. Curiosity does not allow him to take the find to the nearest police station. He tries to look inside and... finds himself in a fairy tale. After all, from that moment on, extraordinary miracles begin to happen in his life. It turns out that an ancient genie named Ghassan Abdurahman ibn Hottab has been languishing in this jar for several millennia. After being released, the wizard swears eternal devotion and loyalty to his savior. This is how L. Lagin begins his work. which is presented in this article is a story about the adventures of two completely different, but kind and cheerful heroes.

Geography exam

The temporary gulf between the pioneer Volka and the ancient Eastern genie turned out to be so huge that the characters of the tale all the time fall into Grief with the desire to help the boy, Hottabych goes with him to the exam and amazes Soviet teachers with the depth of knowledge in the field of the subject. Teachers are surprised to learn that in India the main representatives of the fauna are ants the size of a dog. In addition, our planet is a flat disk, and the horizon is the edge where the dome of heaven touches the earth. All this information Volka ibn Alyosha was forced to tell the teachers, because he was under the influence of the spell of Hottabych. The first miracle of the Eastern sorcerer ended in a crushing failure of the boy in the exam. The frustrated pioneer did not dare to tell the genie about this. Lagin subjects his heroes to such a test. which we present to you, captivates readers with an entertaining and unpredictable plot.

A walk to the movies

Further events turn into an even greater catastrophe for Volka. He is about to go to the cinema, but misses the afternoon session. To help his young master get to the evening show, Hottabych rewards him with a long and thick beard. A sixth grader in this form catches the eye of a friend - Zhenya Bograd. An enterprising genie sends an unwitting witness to Volka's shame to India so that the rumor about a bearded schoolboy does not spread throughout the city. Of course, Zhenya does not stay there for long, because the just and courageous Volka cannot leave a comrade in trouble. With great humor and imagination, Lagin wrote his fairy tale. "Old Man Hottabych", the summary of which cannot convey the whole charm of the work, tells that it is not good to break the established rules. After all, for this everyone is waiting for the inevitable retribution.

Other adventures

Volka and Zhenya are doing their best to accustom the genie to the realities of Soviet life. Accustomed to the ancient Eastern way of life, Hottabych constantly gets into a mess: either he makes a commotion near a street kiosk, or he performs miracles at the stadium, or he surprises everyone in the circus. However, on account of the sorcerer there are also noble deeds. He sharply besieges a mercantile and inhuman foreigner, sends hooligan guys to the police officers and even creates fair justice in Italy. At the very end of the story, readers observe the touching reunion of Hottabych with his brother Omar. This genie turns out to be the exact opposite of the formidable, but very fair and kind Gassan Abdurakhman. For greed and viciousness, the sorcerer Hottabych eventually turns the "amiable" Omar into a satellite of the moon. Lagin constantly surprises his readers. "Old Man Hottabych" (a summary of the story, of course, is not able to convey all the charm of the work) tells that even an ancient wizard can be re-educated and instilled in him socialist values.

Ideas of communism

The fairy tale "Old Man Hottabych" is filled with undisguised communist propaganda. Lagin Lazar Iosifovich struggled to convey to his young readers the idea of ​​​​the correct and fair structure of the Soviet state. Surprisingly, at the same time, the story has not lost a special atmosphere of magic, humor and kindness. The two main characters - the typical Soviet pioneer Vladimir Kostylkov and the ancient genie Gassan Abdurakhman ibn Hottab - are incredibly difficult to understand each other. The sorcerer believes that a rich person must certainly be happy. But the principled Volka indignantly refuses the genie's luxurious gifts: a gold wrist watch, a magnificent palace and caravans loaded with jewels. This plunges Hottabych into bewilderment. But over time, he begins to be imbued with the ideas of communism.

Unfamiliar realities

Very funny in the story, situations are played out in which the wizard is faced with incomprehensible realities of the twentieth century. For example, he takes the subway and the steam locomotive for the devilish incarnations of the formidable king of genies Dzhirdzhis, and Hotabbych is greatly surprised by an ordinary telephone. The idea of ​​universal equality in general seems to the inhabitant of a slave-owning state to be complete savagery. But this does not prevent him from justly punishing the greedy foreigner - Mr. Vandendalles - and the cruel Italian inspector. Lagin made the ancient oriental genie very kind, sympathetic and childishly curious. "Old Man Hottabych" is a book about the fact that true love of life and curiosity do not depend on age and can be characteristic even of very old people.

main characters

The charming Hottabych at the very beginning of the story may seem like an unpleasant old man, but while reading, he involuntarily arouses sympathy. In the fairy tale, the funny genie seems to be a more real and lively character than the somewhat idealized and correct pioneer Volka. Yes, the wizard is often wrong, sometimes he behaves very strangely, but at the same time his eccentricities cause a smile, not annoyance. This is exactly what Lagin wanted. "Old Man Hottabych", whose main characters are loved by many readers, tells about good people capable of being imbued with universal human values, regardless of origin and upbringing. And those who cannot do this are immediately punished by the enterprising Hottabych.

Conclusion

After reading this book, only good feelings remain. Lagin came up with an interesting and instructive story. "Old Man Hottabych", reviews of which are always positive, disposes to a pleasant pastime in the company of a funny genie and a principled schoolboy from the Soviet era. Adults claim that this work has a special value for them. For them, it is a kind of magical ticket to a carefree childhood, allowing you to believe in miracles again for a short while. Children will like "Old Man Hottabych" too. Therefore, we strongly advise you to study this book in the original. Happy reading!

"Old Man Hottabych" is a funny, fascinating and instructive story about how a simple Soviet schoolboy found a bottle with a genie and made friends with him.

Summary of "Old Man Hottabych" for the reader's diary

Name: Old Man Hottabych

Number of pages: 260. Lagin L. I. "Old Man Hottabych". Publishing house "Samovar". Moscow. year 2012

Genre: Fairy Tale

Year of writing: 1938

main characters

Volka Kostylkov- a seventh grader, smart, inquisitive, decent and principled boy.

Old man Hottabych is a powerful genie, a kind wizard.

Zhenya Bogorad - pioneer, best friend Wolves.

Omar Yusuf is the brother of Hottabych, evil, treacherous and boastful.

Plot

Once, a simple Soviet pioneer, Volka Kostylkov, was incredibly lucky - while swimming in the lake, he pulled out an ancient jar with a genie named Gassan Abdurakhman ibn Khottab from the bottom. After being released from many years of imprisonment in a jar, the genie swore allegiance to the boy, and from that moment amazing things began to happen in Moscow.

Old Hottabych sincerely wanted to help his young owner, but the huge gulf between the oriental genie from ancient times and the Soviet boy made itself felt. As a result, both heroes constantly fell into funny situations. For example, in a geography lesson, Hottabych impressed the teachers with his "knowledge", talking about ants the size of a dog and that the Earth has the shape of a flat disk. In order to get to the evening screening of an adult movie, the genie rewarded Volka with a big beard, and sent his friend Zhenya Bogorad to distant India so that he would not tell anyone about it. As a result, the boy had to fly on a flying carpet and rescued from the warlike Indians.

Once, while traveling on a steamboat, Zhenya found an old jug and released Hottabych's brother, Omar Yusuf, into the wild. Despite the fact that the jinn were brothers, they were very different from each other. So, Hassan was kind and inquisitive, while his brother was distinguished by cruelty and selfishness. Hottabych had to save Zhenya from the wrath of Omar, and he had to send his brother into space. He also realized how lagged behind modern life, and decided to study. Volka and Zhenya began to study for the same "five" in order to pass on their knowledge to a genie friend, who turned into a diligent student.

Retelling plan

1. Magic jug.
2. Introduction to genie.
3. Hottabych faces Soviet reality.
4. Zhenya finds Hottabych's brother, Omar, and nearly dies at his hands.
5. Hottabych protects Zhenya and sends his brother into space.
6. Hottabych becomes a student.

the main idea

A man with his own hands is able to create such miracles that no magician will be able to do.

What does it teach

Teaches to be bold, decisive, open to new knowledge. It also teaches to always help those who are in trouble, and to stand up for the weak.

Review

Volka's behavior deserves great respect - he helps the genie to adapt to a new life, explains how important it is to do good deeds. Under the influence of the boy, the genie himself begins to change for the better.

Proverbs

• Will and work give wonderful shoots.
• What is gold to me, the sun would shine.
• The earth is painted by the sun, and man's work.

What did you like

I really liked how Hottabych shared his knowledge of geography in a lesson at school, and how, because of his interference, Volka failed the exam.

Rating of the reader's diary

Average rating: 4.7. Total ratings received: 48.

“The Soviets have their own pride,” Vladimir Mayakovsky once wrote. This also applies to fairy tales. There was the Soviet Pinocchio - Pinocchio, the Soviet Doolittle - Aibolit, the Soviet Wizard of Oz - the Wizard of the Emerald City ... Well, the Soviet genie was presented to us by a writer named Lazar Iosifovich Lagin.

The book "Old Man Hottabych" by the famous Soviet writer Lazar Lagin (12/04/1903 - 06/16/1979), a native of Belarus, was probably read by every representative of the older generation.

And if you haven't read it, you've certainly seen the movie of the same name. Even if you haven't watched it, you've heard the title. So, if you ask - "Do you know who Hottabych is?", The answer will be in the affirmative. What is the popularity of this character?

Everyone soviet child dreamed that one day a genie would come to him, fulfilling his cherished desires with the help of a magic beard. Surely, many envied Volka Kostylkov, because this boy managed to ride on a magic carpet and eat a free popsicle.

The old man Hottabych became a cult literary hero, children loved the book of Lazar Lagin no less than the adventures of Pinocchio or the tale of Cheburashka and Gena the crocodile. But did we think in childhood what the writer wanted to convey to his readers, what is the meaning of this literary tale?

But first, let us briefly recall the life path of the writer, because his biography is closely intertwined with his creative credo.

BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF LAZAR LAGIN

In fact, he is not Lagin, but Ginzburg. From the name and surname - Lazar GINzburg - a literary pseudonym turned out.

Our hero was born on December 4, 1903 in the Belarusian city of Vitebsk in a poor Jewish family. Immediately after graduation, 16-year-old Lazar goes to civil war, a year later he joins the Communist Party (then the RCP (b)), and after (!) - the Komsomol. Which, in general, is not surprising, given that the Komsomol organization arose later than the party one. In fact, Lagin created this same Komsomol in Belarus.

Young Lagin

Lagin's further career develops no less rapidly and colorfully. He begins to publish essays and poems in newspapers, then enters the Minsk Conservatory in the vocal department, but due to difficulties with music theory, he drops out.

In 1924, Lagin was already in Moscow, where he graduated from the Institute National economy majoring in political economy. For some time, Lagin served in the Red Army. And, finally, in 1930 he completely immersed himself in literary activity.

His career is gradually going up. Since 1934, Lagin has been deputy editor-in-chief of the Krokodil magazine, since 1936 he has been a member of the Writers' Union, and in 1938 his fairy tale about Hassan Abdurrahman ibn Khottab was published ...

A separate edition of "The Old Man Hottabych" was published in 1940.

Lazar Lagin in the Navy

Soon the war began, and Lazar Lagin did not sit in the rear. He defended Odessa and Sevastopol, and ended his military career in Romania as part of the Danube Flotilla. In battles with the Nazis, he used not only weapons, but also his literary talent, composing military songs and caustic satire.

At the end of the war, Lagin returns as a correspondent to Krokodil, writes the satirical "Injurious Tales" and several novels in the style of "social fiction". It is for the fantastic novel "The Island of Disappointment" that he is awarded the Stalin Prize. By the way, Lagin considered the novel “The Blue Man” to be the best of his works, about how a student of the history department of Moscow State University falls into the past and participates in the birth of a revolutionary movement.

But none of the writer's books could surpass the popularity of his fairy tale Old Man Hottabych.

And in 1955, Lagin released a new edition of his fairy tale. As a result, the volume of the book Old Man Hottabych almost doubled. Some scenes have been added, others have been heavily modified, others have simply been removed. But since 1999, it has become the rule to publish Starik Hottabych in the 1938 edition. As a reader, it is difficult to make a choice between two versions of a fairy tale: each has its own advantages and disadvantages.

We will focus on the analysis of the original version (1938).

WHAT IS THE MYSTERY OF THE FAIRY TALE OLD MAN HOTTABYCH?

“I don’t know if anyone paid attention to the striking coincidences in the story with another work created around the same time.
I mean "The Master and Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov.
Read from this angle, "Old Man Hottabych" gives reason for reflection.
In both cases, in absolutely materialistic Moscow, there is a character endowed with supernatural power. He is not afraid of a man with a gun (Mauser), personifying power. And the very omnipotence of this power seems illusory ”(From the article by G. Alyunin“ The tale is a lie, but there is a hint in it ”).

Take the same Hottabych, who is he?

What is unclear here? - anyone who read the book of the writer Lagin as a child will be surprised. - Gassan Abdurrahman ibn Khottab - a child of the Arab East, a Muslim. The name is Arabic, the clothes are Arabic, Allah remembers… By the way, the powerful ruler Suleiman ibn Daoud imprisoned him in a jar for more than three millennia. Also an Arab, presumably!

Here, as young readers say, is the first “plug”: Islam today is a little more than fourteen centuries old. About any Suleiman three thousand years ago, no one heard of, but everyone knew the brilliant Solomon, the builder of Jerusalem and the son of the Israeli king David.

"Gag" is the first, but not the only one. Here's the next one! Recall the scene in the circus. Do you remember the spell that Hottabych utters? It sounds unpronounceable “lehododilikraskalo”, its meaning for our hearing is not clear. For Arabic, I must say, too. But religious Jews, having easily broken this verbal pile-small into separate words, will also be able to sing it!

“Leho dodi likras kalo,” they will drag on Friday evening, meeting the arrival of Saturday. And this will be the first line of the Jewish liturgical hymn.

"Go, my friend, meet your bride" - that's what Hottabych shouted in 1938 and is still sung by Jews on Friday evenings. And the bride - she is Saturday!

It is difficult to say today whether the editor of the Pionerskaya Pravda newspaper and the Soviet censors knew what kind of "lekho ..." this was. Nevertheless, the story was published, although Yiddish itself had just been struck out of the state languages ​​and removed from the coat of arms of the Byelorussian SSR ... It is worth noting that the intellectual professionalism of the writers and editors of that time was quite high, therefore, as the press writes today, that the editors did not know Yiddish and therefore let the tale go to print, the probability is low.

Probably, the background was in something else - do not forget that it was 1938, tense relations with Germany, where the persecution of Jews began.

But let's continue about the writer's hints in the fairy tale.

The writer, as if not feeling danger, continues to give us secret signs.

Even before shouting out an outlandish spell, Old Man Hottabych pulls out 13 hairs from his beard and tears them into small pieces: magic does not work without them. But why exactly 13? Don't say it's a coincidence! Maybe because the genie is an evil spirit? Although we are not talking about any black deeds here.

On the contrary, a little earlier, Old Man Hottabych, who was carried away by his omnipotence and cleared the circus of orchestra players, artists and spectators, now, at the request of Volka, returns to their places the victims of his vanity scattered on the four sides of the inhabited world. That is, he does a good deed - just with the help of an outlandish spell and these same 13 hairs!

Well, to whom does the number 13 help to do good and useful deeds? In Christian civilization, it brings only misfortunes: it is not for nothing that they call it the devil's dozen. For Muslims, 13 is not distinguished from a number of other numbers in any way. And only among the Jews is it happy: it unites the disparate parts into a whole, and restores the lost harmony. Here the old genie pulls out exactly 13 hairs - and in the blink of an eye, all the people scattered around the world again find themselves together under the dome of the circus. Deafening applause is heard, and the lost harmony ceases to be lost.

In Lagin's books, names and titles are scattered around the books, the roots of which lie in Hebrew, and events that originate in Jewish traditions. At the same time, they are hidden no worse than the origin of Hottabych.

marginal notes

When Lazar turns thirteen, his parents will gather guests for a bar mitzvah - a celebration of growing up. Now boys are given money on such an occasion, they used to give books. There will be many books, as well as guests.

One of them - shortly before that published in Russia "Copper Jug" by the Englishman F. Anstey - Lazar immediately singled out from the total number.

Looking from a distance into the century, you understand how timely this book was in the hands of the boy. Growing up will coincide with the beginning of his passion for the East. Four years later, when Lazar, who had just graduated from school, and his parents would be forced to flee to Moscow from the pogroms perpetrated in Minsk by Polish legionnaires, he met the writer Shklovsky.

He will take an interest in what the young man is reading, and will hear in response: the tales of the Thousand and One Nights. Seven years later, the future author of the book, Old Man Hottabych, will enthusiastically retell all the same fairy tales, sitting at the bedside of a sick boy. And ten years later, this boy will become the prototype of Volka ibn Alyosha.

WHY DID LAGIN ENCRYPT HIS WORKS?

So why, in fact, did the writer “encrypt” his works, hide in them secret references to the forbidden language? And all this in a “ruthless” country towards people during the years of the so-called “Great Terror” promoted today by liberals and the West?!

Jewish codes - written, cultural, Jewish and Kabbalistic (Lagin also has a lot of them) - are not a fig in your pocket for Soviet power but the connection with childhood and youth. Connection with Minsk. In multinational Moscow, neither Yiddish nor Hebrew sounded. There, nothing reminded of the traditions that filled the childhood of a boy from the Pale of Settlement.

Yes, and Lagin would not have been honored with the fig of Soviet power! He was deep Soviet man, who firmly believes in the ideals of justice, which at that time did not seem to many to be either wild or unattainable. And he also has this faith from Minsk - here he joined the party, here he headed the Jewish bureau of the Belarusian Komsomol, here he created the newspaper Krasnaya Smena (the progenitor of the Red Change).

It’s just that when Lagin wrote a children’s fairy tale, his childhood spoke in him. Something without which a writer ceases to be a writer, just as any person cannot be a Human if there is no connection with childhood in his soul.

"Childhood is that great time life, when the foundation is laid for the whole future of a moral person, said the great Russian teacher N.V. Shelgunov (1824 - 1891).

But this tale is not only literary, but also fantastic.

WHAT FANTASTIC READERS NEED?

Fantasists somehow do not think, allowing the heroes of their works to achieve certain goals, most often reduced to personal well-being or achieving world peace (an example of this is Hollywood films). Lazar Lagin looked at this situation differently - the Old Man Hottabych presented by him turned out to be a powerful creature capable of changing reality, but at the same time he was overloaded with outdated ideas about reality, the return of which no one living today would wish.

From the first pages it becomes clear to the reader that no good can be expected from Hottabych. It does more harm than good. Of course, if someone else opened the vessel, who had other, selfish, convictions in life that were not saturated with Soviet everyday life, the skills of a genie would certainly be useful to such a person. To the pioneer Volka, the genie was unnecessarily, only a burden that would have to be brought up, showing him by personal example how to act in this or that case. If a person has no temptations, then there is no need for such a genie: everything is available to everyone equally, no one cares about personal well-being, people have work, they do not know the need. This is how Lazar Lagin draws in front of the reader Soviet Union. You can’t even give to the beggars, because there are no beggars in the country.

So is it possible to change the world for the better, given the appropriate opportunities? Using the example of Old Man Hottabych, it becomes clear that we only imagine the idyll of today, which should be deeply disgusting to those who lived in the past and who will have to live in the future.

It is this truth that is proposed to be taken as the main idea of ​​the work of Lazar Lagin. There is no need to try to adjust other people's mores to our own ideas about what should be, otherwise those whose way of life we ​​will try to change will have an equally destructive effect on our own way of life.

This is what we felt during the reign of Gorbachev-Yeltsin, when our liberals chose the collective West as the genie (Old Man Hottabych).

marginal notes

The image of the genie needs some clarification.

Jinn are the heroes of Arabic mythology, most often acting in a role similar to the more familiar demons or devils.

Jinn gained popularity in Western culture after the release of the Thousand and One Nights collection of fairy tales.

In the myths, there were four types of genies: evil fire-wielding ifrits, cruel werewolves ghouls, omnipotent rational marids and weak forces. Jinn lived in parallel world where people couldn't get in. Even in translation, the word "genie" means "hidden".

Old Hottabych was a marid - these higher genies could be both evil and good, they were able to predict the future and help achieve goals.

They looked like tall, pale people with white beards, they knew how to release fire from their nostrils and turn into ethereal flying creatures. But it was the marids who often became prisoners of various objects: for example, rings or lamps in the fairy tale about Aladdin or bottles in the story of Hottabych.

The Islamic prophet and Jewish king Suleiman ibn Daud, whom Hottabych served and was a slave to his ring, is better known as King Solomon.

He possessed extraordinary wisdom, knew how to talk with animals, control the wind and had power over all creatures, including jinn. The Hottabovich brothers did not want to be under the rule of Suleiman anymore, for which they were punished by imprisonment in bottles.

By the way, there are many historical absurdities in the biography of Hottabych. In the fairy tale, the genie is a Muslim and commemorates the Baghdad caliph Harun al-Rashid, a real historical figure and at the same time the hero of the 1001 Nights fairy tales. However, if Solomon put the genie in the bottle, then the Old Man Hottabych could not practice Islam, which appeared much later, and even more so he could not know Harun.

By the way, about caliphs. In Jerusalem, and today you can see the square of Omar ibn Khattab. That was the name of another famous and Arab caliph (585 - 644), who was personally converted to Islam by the prophet Muhammad himself.

And here is what L. Lagin says about Old Man Hottabych:

"According to the concept of genies from ancient fairy tales and those whose desires they fulfilled in these tales, this was the most complete human happiness, which one could only dream of.
Hundreds and hundreds of years have passed since these tales were first told, but the idea of ​​happiness has long been associated, and in capitalist countries, many people to this day are still associated with chests chock-full of gold and diamonds, with power over others. people (highlighted by us).
... Well, what if such a genie suddenly came to our country, where there are completely different ideas about happiness and justice, where the power of the rich has long and forever been destroyed, and where only honest work brings happiness, honor and glory to a person?

HOW THE TALE IS INTERPRETED BY THE MODERN SEREBRNIKOVS

Frame from the movie "Hott @ Bych" 2008

In the 2006 film "Hott @ Bych" there are no longer ideological silver-bearers, and the genie is a hardened and brutal cynic.

Natalya Lagina (daughter of the writer)

“I managed to ban several adaptations, but when I saw this film, I was in a swoon. There remained only the name of the father character and the fact that he got out of the bottle. Well, come up with your own "Pokhabych", and do not speculate on the brand. The old man Hottabych from a children's book cannot be interested in women with tits on TV and walk around "piss", say through every word "goof off".

It is difficult to add anything to these words. But, I would like to hope that the adventures of the Soviet Hottabych did not end with the Soviet era. The book is still interesting, instructive and let's hope that modern generation it will also be interesting and useful.

AFTERWORD

In 1979, the all-Union recording studio "Melody" released a disc with the musical "Hottabych" by composer G. Gladkov. And the heroes of the famous story-tale sang in the voices of popular actors M. Boyarsky, L. Gurchenko, I. Muravyova ...

Lazar Iosifovich Lagin no longer had to see the record. He died on June 16, 1979. In Moscow, on Chernyakhovsky Street, there is a house, noticeable with a memorial plaque with the inscription "The writer Konstantin Simonov lived here ...". Lazar Iosifovich Lagin also lived in the same house in recent years. Truth, memorial plaque there is still no evidence of this.

Strange and insulting... For some reason, there is a plaque to Solzhenitsyn, whose work is opposed by most of our country, but there is no memorial plaque to the writer, whose fairy tale is loved by all generations both in Russia and in the post-Soviet space.

In Belarus, in Vitebsk, there is a decorative sculptural composition at the Lyalka puppet theater, a monument to the old man Hottabych. Belarusians honor their famous people who left their mark both in Soviet and Belarusian culture.

Isn't it time for us to pay tribute to our beloved writers, who proclaimed Justice in their works, to erect monuments to such as Lagin, and not to Solzhenitsyn.

Year: 1938 Genre: story

Main characters: the schoolboy Volka and the magician Hottabych.

While swimming in the lake, the young pioneer Volka finds a jug containing the real magician Hottabych. The curiosity of the boy leads to the fact that a wide variety of miracles begin to happen in Moscow. Volka and his friend Zheka find themselves in amazing, fabulous situations, from which they come out with honor, because it is not for nothing that these boys are pioneers. Friends fly on a magic carpet, travel on an icebreaker in the Arctic, save brother Hottabych and figure out how to pacify him, that is, they lead an active, adventurous life.

Conclusion. This tale tells that true friendship and faith in yourself and your friends conquers everything.

Read the summary of the tale Old Man Hottabych

Adventurer and great dreamer Volka Kostylkov, swimming in a pond, found an amazing vessel. Diving a third time, he pulled out a slippery, greenish object from the bottom. It was all covered in amazing writing.

Without thinking twice, the boy opened it and with noise, dirt and sparks, the genie Hassan Abdurrahman ibn Hottab appeared from it. He spent many millennia in a jug. There he was imprisoned, by agreement, by evil spirits, since he often showed good feelings. The old wizard, in gratitude, swore to Volka in eternal friendship and devotion. From that moment, in Moscow, and in the boy's life, various miracles begin to happen. Dishes begin to fly and furniture begins to move arbitrarily.

The boy does not hide anything from the new "old" friend. Tells him about his life, school, friends. And the genie, in many respects, having made his conclusions, proceeds to action. Trying to help his young friend, the wizard interferes in the life of Volka ibn Alyosha, as the genie calls the boy, and creates so many ridiculous situations that not only Volka, but also many of his friends live interesting and fun. So, during the exam in geography, Hottabych inspired the boy with such knowledge that horrified not only teachers, but also Vladimir Kostylkov himself. The boy, at the exam, declares that ants the size of a dog live in India, and the Earth is a disk, and so on. The student fails this test and is very upset. But he, fearing that Hottabych would not take revenge on the teachers taking the exam, did not tell the old man anything about the problem that had arisen.

What followed was even worse. Helping Volka to get to the evening session at the cinema, the magician "rewards" him with a large beard, which surprised and amazed the boy's friend, and so that his comrade would not spill the beans, the genie sends him away - to India, where he is very warmly received by the locals: they feed him delicious food, treat him amazing fruits, ride on an elephant. Volka rushes to save his friend: he flies with Hottabych on a flying carpet and returns with his friend.

It's hard for an old wizard to live in modern world. He does not understand either the actions of people or their deeds. The genie does not know what many household items are for. It is often very difficult to explain to him their functional purpose. It is sometimes impossible for both Volka and his friend Zhenya to familiarize the old magician with the realities of our time. He does not know what the subway and trolley bus are. I have never seen such tall buildings and noisy streets, so many well-dressed people before.

But Hottabych really likes the events of which he suddenly became a participant. He "has fun" in the circus, and shows such miracles that are beyond the control of magicians from different countries. At the stadium, "helping" Volka's beloved team, at the request of the magician, goal after goal flies into the opponents' gates. The players themselves, both teams, do not understand what is happening, because the balls fly by themselves, the players do not even touch them.

Volka is not only frightened by what is happening, but simply does not agree with this turn of events. Near the bookstand, Hottabych creates a noisy commotion, that is, he is freaking out with might and main. It is not possible to stop and persuade the genie not to help and change nothing. Both Volka and his friends have to work hard to save one of the objectionable or "guilty", according to the genie, from the magician's spells here and there.

Then the friends go on a trip to the Arctic Ocean. Everything around surprises and amazes the guys. White silence surrounds them. From the deck of the ship "Ladoga" they see polar bears, which are slowly wandering in the distance. The boys have a great mood and they crave adventure. Unexpectedly, they manage to save Hottabych's brother, Omar Yusuf, who ancient tradition must kill his savior. Genie and Volka barely manage to save Zheka from a big disaster. After all, it was he who opened the next jug where he lived, this evil wizard, completely unlike Hottabych. He was not only heartless, but also loved only himself, moreover, he does not believe in progress and scientific discoveries. To save the world and everyone around him from the disaster in the person of Omar, the wizard brother turns Omar into a satellite of the Moon and "sends him to surf the expanses of the starry ocean."

Day after day runs, and the boy friends study well, get deep knowledge to pass it on to Hottabych, who, with their help, masters and learns everything new and interesting that the guys tell him. The boys and the genie have an interesting, multifaceted life, full of adventures, deeds and fantasies. They are interesting and fun. They have big life plans. Each of them has chosen for himself a further path and a dream to which they will strive and achieve their goal.

This fairy tale book tells that dreams come true, you just need to want it and, of course, make efforts.

Picture or drawing Lagin - Old Man Hottabych

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Nov 01 2017

Pioneer Volka Kostylkov finds a vessel with a genie in it.

He himself, without knowing it, gives him a lot of problems: he incorrectly tells at the exam (and he does not suspect this, but Volka did not say), he awarded Volka with a beard so that he would get into the cinema, caused a panic, threatened the girls in the pavilion and, as it turns out, later threw Zhenya to India and bewitched Goga so that he would bark as soon as he began to gossip, to sneak behind his back.

Needless to say, this book will make your leisure time much more fun. Then Volka and Hottabych fly in search of Zhenya. It turns out that the old man has no idea about modern life and is even illiterate. He offers Volka rich gifts, but he refuses. The old man began to threaten Varvara Stepanovna, the teacher of Volka and Zhenya. Then the guys take him to the circus, where he watches performances, eats popsicles, learns to read, performs in the circus and gets sick. He is cured like other people.

Goga is cured by a doctor who said that there is no need to snitch, gossip or say nasty things. More about Goga in the book is not said.

Further, Hottabych sees the "magic ring", meets with the greedy American Harry Waddendaless and taught him a lesson, because he wanted to be the master of the world and wanted to take Volka, Zhenya and Hottabych himself into slavery.

Then the guys go to a football match, where Hottabych at first can’t cope with the machine gun, shies away from the subway, scares the Eskimo saleswoman, scatters balls and plays along with the Puck team.

Now the guys and Hottabych, as in the new cartoon amazing monster, are looking for his friends and brother Omar Yusuf. In Italy, they run into a mine, kind fishermen, Harry Vadendales, and a bribery inspector. Hottabych punishes the villains who captured the fisherman for the suitcase that the old man gave him, and everyone thought that he had stolen. Volka asks the old man to get to Moscow to pass the re-examination. Volka is doing great.

In mid-July, the old man arranges for his friends an interesting trip to the Lagoda steamer. The old man, who was reading a textbook on geography, understands that he let Volka down in the exam and even gives Varvara Stepanovna gifts. He amuses the audience with various miracles and on the way back Zhenya finds his brother Hottabych, who is the complete opposite of his brother. Hottabych, though quick-tempered, is kind, and Omar Yusuf is narrow-minded and vicious. However, Volka will be able to tame the evil genie. He wanted to make sure of the veracity of Volka's story about the Moon and became her companion. Hottabych found a passion for radio engineering.