May 28, 2021

Congrats to Mikhail Kubar!


Congrats to Mikhail Kubar!
We'll gladly sit through a graduation if there's only one name to read. Yngaa_school, Instagram.

Living in a small town has its perks. For one, you get to be de facto valedictorian.

The village of Ynga in Yakutia graduated only one high-school senior, but simultaneously had a 100% graduation rate. Mikhail Kubar, the sole senior class member at the village school, was honored at a ceremony last week.

During the event, Kubar's first-grade teacher noted that he was also the only first-grader in her class. While at one time he had as many as four or five classmates, Kubar finished solo. Other school administrators noted with pride and humor that the entire eleventh grade had 100% attendance, 100% academic performance, and 100% participation in activities, which we certainly can't claim.

The ceremony was proudly posted to Instagram and has since made the rounds on some Russian media channels.

Mikhail, if you're reading this, a big поздравляем from all of us at Russian Life!

You Might Also Like

Ninety-Four Years Young
  • May 11, 2021

Ninety-Four Years Young

Daily stretching and exercise are the secrets to a long and healthy life—and lots of gold badges. 
Schoolboy Spat
  • March 24, 2021

Schoolboy Spat

“During childhood, when we argued with each other in the yard, we’d say: It takes one to know one!” – Vladimir Putin comments on Joe Biden’s belief that the President of the Russian Federation is a “killer.”
Students to Sue
  • November 30, 2020

Students to Sue

A group of students from Moscow State University is working on suing the university for a partial refund.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

How Russia Got That Way
September 20, 2025

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

The Samovar Murders
November 01, 2019

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.

Murder at the Dacha
July 01, 2013

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
November 01, 2012

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

Murder and the Muse
December 12, 2016

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955