Maya KUCHERSKAYA has published two short story collections, most recently the 2004 bestseller [‘Modern Patericon: To Be Read in Times of Despair,’], one novel ([‘Rain God,’] 2007), a biography of Grand Duke Constantine Romanov, and a children’s adaptation of the New Testament.  She holds a PhD in Literature from UCLA, and is a professor in the Department of Russian Literature at the Russian School of Economics. Her awards include the 2007 Student Booker Prize and the 2006 Molodaya Gvardia Award.  She contributes a column to the daily Vedomosti and cultural commentaries on radio broadcasts.  She attends courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the US Department of State.