AITMATOV, Chingiz (Torekulovich)

(1928-)

   Formerly Soviet (now Kyrgyzstanian) writer and diplomat, known mostly for his mainstream fiction (for which he has been a Nobel candidate), which poetically depicts Man-Nature relations. His one venture into sf is I Dol'she Veka Dlitsia Den' (1980; trans John French as The Day Lasts Longer than a Hundred Years 1983 UK): part of this novel realistically depicts life in a small Kirghiz town near a secret Soviet cosmodrome, and part comprises a NEAR FUTURE thriller set on board the Soviet-US carrier Parity, which encounters ALIENS. Written before perestroika, the novel raised controversy due to its obvious pacifist mood.