Nina Kosterina
Encyclopedia
Nina Kosterina was a Soviet partisan. Her father was a journalist. She joined the Komsomol
in 1936. In her diary, she described her life from 1936 until her death. She died during a partisan mission which started in 14 November 1941.
Nina Kosterina was born in a revolutionary camp just as the Russian civil war
was ending and the birth of Communism in Russia was getting under way. Her early life mirrored the struggle of millions of Russian citizens as they attempted to stabilize their world. Her father, Alexei Evgrafovich Kosterin, was a Bolshevik
agitator who was arrested twice and spent three years in prison for his role in the uprising against the Czar in 1917. He married Anna Mickhailovna sometime between 1918 and 1920. Nina was their first child.
Settled in Moscow
by 1922, the Kosterin family proudly supported the new government. Nina began her training early as a young Communist, influenced by her family's politics and the infusion of Communist philosophy into the education system. In 1925, the family welcomed a second child—Lelya. During this period, a power struggle was playing out between Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin
and two other top leaders, Leon Trotsky
and Joseph Stalin
. Stalin emerged as the winner. Food was scarce throughout the country and the grand experiment of Communism was undergoing growing pains as Soviet leaders tried to follow Marxist principles but salvage the country's economy.
Nina apparently struggled with early learning but persisted in her studies for the next several years, greatly inspired by revolutionary teachings, her "job" as an activist and her love of learning. During this time, she began a diary (at age 15) and was soon after accepted into the Young Communist League known as the Komsomol
.
She started her diary by calling herself "an ordinary girl." This diary became a window into her world until her death in 1941. From it, Nina emerged as a strong-headed, reflective, sometimes brooding teen who took herself and the world seriously. She was passionate about the arts and her role as a Young Communist. She wanted to be on a good path as a person and she was honest with herself when she struggled. She also used her diary to chronicle her roller-coaster friendships with a girl named Lena Gershman and a boy named Grisha Grinblat.
In 1936, Nina welcomed another sister—Vera—and also said good-bye to her father as he was sent to the Russian Far East on assignment. She would never see him again. While away, Alexei fell out of favor with Stalin's increasingly paranoid government. He was eventually sent to a prison gulag as a "dangerous social element," a fate suffered by many during the worst of the Stalin years. He remained imprisoned throughout World War II.
Nina graduated from secondary school in 1939, eager to become a geologist. While she was at a summer geology camp as part of her college training, Germany invaded Russia. Her family evacuated Moscow but she chose to return and volunteer as a student soldier. She parachuted behind enemy lines in November and participated in partisan missions for about a month. Partisan soldiers—men and women—were the “kamikazes” of the Soviet war effort, attacking and harassing the Germans in the territories they now occupied, usually through stealthy night raids. Partisans worked as explosive experts, nurses, radio operators, scouts, information gatherers, and liaisons with the local villagers.
In January 1942, Nina's family received notice that she had perished during a mission in December. For years, the family lacked details about what had happened. Then, a memoir released about soldiers from the war effort found its way to the family and included an official report about her last mission. In the report, a member of the unit described how a band of twenty-two partisans—Nina among them—departed on a mission December 19. They slipped behind enemy lines south of Moscow near the cities of Podolsk and Narofominsk. As they went deep into the woods, they fell into a German ambush, tripping a wire that set off an explosion. Fifteen partisans, including Nina, perished. The surviving seven ended their mission and returned to their base camp to report the attack. The goal of their mission was not shared.
After the war, Nina's mother and sisters returned to Moscow and found her diary tucked away in their apartment. They kept it safe and later gave it to Alexei for safe-keeping once he was released from Stalin's prisons in 1955. The diary stayed private until 1962, when the family allowed a Soviet magazine to publish it. This was possible only because the new Soviet leader, Nikita Khrushchev
, began allowing citizens to talk more openly about their experiences during the Stalin years. Many journals, diaries and memoirs started to emerge. Two years later, Nina's diary was released in Russian book form. Then, in 1968, it was released in English by American publisher, Crown Books. It became a bestseller.
Alexei, who remained out of favor even with the new government due to his activism, died in 1968. Nina's mother died in 1974. Nina's youngest sister, Vera, died in 1997. As of 2004, Nina's other sister, Lelya (also known as Elena), was still living in Moscow.
Phillips, Jennifer. Nina Kosterina: A Young Communist in Stalinist Russia, Write Words Inc. (ebook) and Nose in a Book Publishing (paperback), 2010
Komsomol
The Communist Union of Youth , usually known as Komsomol , was the youth division of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The Komsomol in its earliest form was established in urban centers in 1918. During the early years, it was a Russian organization, known as the Russian Communist Union of...
in 1936. In her diary, she described her life from 1936 until her death. She died during a partisan mission which started in 14 November 1941.
Nina Kosterina was born in a revolutionary camp just as the Russian civil war
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
was ending and the birth of Communism in Russia was getting under way. Her early life mirrored the struggle of millions of Russian citizens as they attempted to stabilize their world. Her father, Alexei Evgrafovich Kosterin, was a Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
agitator who was arrested twice and spent three years in prison for his role in the uprising against the Czar in 1917. He married Anna Mickhailovna sometime between 1918 and 1920. Nina was their first child.
Settled in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
by 1922, the Kosterin family proudly supported the new government. Nina began her training early as a young Communist, influenced by her family's politics and the infusion of Communist philosophy into the education system. In 1925, the family welcomed a second child—Lelya. During this period, a power struggle was playing out between Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and communist politician who led the October Revolution of 1917. As leader of the Bolsheviks, he headed the Soviet state during its initial years , as it fought to establish control of Russia in the Russian Civil War and worked to create a...
and two other top leaders, Leon Trotsky
Leon Trotsky
Leon Trotsky , born Lev Davidovich Bronshtein, was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and theorist, Soviet politician, and the founder and first leader of the Red Army....
and Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
. Stalin emerged as the winner. Food was scarce throughout the country and the grand experiment of Communism was undergoing growing pains as Soviet leaders tried to follow Marxist principles but salvage the country's economy.
Nina apparently struggled with early learning but persisted in her studies for the next several years, greatly inspired by revolutionary teachings, her "job" as an activist and her love of learning. During this time, she began a diary (at age 15) and was soon after accepted into the Young Communist League known as the Komsomol
Komsomol
The Communist Union of Youth , usually known as Komsomol , was the youth division of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The Komsomol in its earliest form was established in urban centers in 1918. During the early years, it was a Russian organization, known as the Russian Communist Union of...
.
She started her diary by calling herself "an ordinary girl." This diary became a window into her world until her death in 1941. From it, Nina emerged as a strong-headed, reflective, sometimes brooding teen who took herself and the world seriously. She was passionate about the arts and her role as a Young Communist. She wanted to be on a good path as a person and she was honest with herself when she struggled. She also used her diary to chronicle her roller-coaster friendships with a girl named Lena Gershman and a boy named Grisha Grinblat.
In 1936, Nina welcomed another sister—Vera—and also said good-bye to her father as he was sent to the Russian Far East on assignment. She would never see him again. While away, Alexei fell out of favor with Stalin's increasingly paranoid government. He was eventually sent to a prison gulag as a "dangerous social element," a fate suffered by many during the worst of the Stalin years. He remained imprisoned throughout World War II.
Nina graduated from secondary school in 1939, eager to become a geologist. While she was at a summer geology camp as part of her college training, Germany invaded Russia. Her family evacuated Moscow but she chose to return and volunteer as a student soldier. She parachuted behind enemy lines in November and participated in partisan missions for about a month. Partisan soldiers—men and women—were the “kamikazes” of the Soviet war effort, attacking and harassing the Germans in the territories they now occupied, usually through stealthy night raids. Partisans worked as explosive experts, nurses, radio operators, scouts, information gatherers, and liaisons with the local villagers.
In January 1942, Nina's family received notice that she had perished during a mission in December. For years, the family lacked details about what had happened. Then, a memoir released about soldiers from the war effort found its way to the family and included an official report about her last mission. In the report, a member of the unit described how a band of twenty-two partisans—Nina among them—departed on a mission December 19. They slipped behind enemy lines south of Moscow near the cities of Podolsk and Narofominsk. As they went deep into the woods, they fell into a German ambush, tripping a wire that set off an explosion. Fifteen partisans, including Nina, perished. The surviving seven ended their mission and returned to their base camp to report the attack. The goal of their mission was not shared.
After the war, Nina's mother and sisters returned to Moscow and found her diary tucked away in their apartment. They kept it safe and later gave it to Alexei for safe-keeping once he was released from Stalin's prisons in 1955. The diary stayed private until 1962, when the family allowed a Soviet magazine to publish it. This was possible only because the new Soviet leader, Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
, began allowing citizens to talk more openly about their experiences during the Stalin years. Many journals, diaries and memoirs started to emerge. Two years later, Nina's diary was released in Russian book form. Then, in 1968, it was released in English by American publisher, Crown Books. It became a bestseller.
Alexei, who remained out of favor even with the new government due to his activism, died in 1968. Nina's mother died in 1974. Nina's youngest sister, Vera, died in 1997. As of 2004, Nina's other sister, Lelya (also known as Elena), was still living in Moscow.
Sources
Ginsburg, Mirra. Translator. The Diary of Nina Kosterina, Crown Books, 1968.Phillips, Jennifer. Nina Kosterina: A Young Communist in Stalinist Russia, Write Words Inc. (ebook) and Nose in a Book Publishing (paperback), 2010