Gontar, Avrom Iutkovich

Born Mar. 7 (20), 1908, in Berdichev. Soviet Jewish writer. Member of the CPSU since 1940.

Gontar’ began to publish in the late 1920’s. In the collections of poems On the Scaffolding (1933), Clear Day (1938), and Expanse (1940), Gontar’ celebrated the heroic labor of people during the first five-year plans. In the poetry collection Remembered for the Last Time (1936) and the novel In a Neglected Corner (1937), Gontar’ described the difficult lot of the residents on the outskirts of his native city during World War I. Soviet patriotism permeates the novel A Big Family (1948) and the collection of poems Doves Under the Roof (1969). The poetry collections March (1942), Silver Strands (1957), Dream City (1963), and Measure of Love (1966) were published in Russian translation.