Sarseke Medeu

(1936-2024)

Writer Medeu Sarseke was born on January 2, 1936, in the Kainar state farm of the Abayrali district. After graduating from high school in 1953, he entered the Kazakh Polytechnic Institute and, after completing his education, turned to journalism. He began his career as the head of the youth workers' department at the "Leninshil Zhas" newspaper.

Later, he moved to Semey and worked as an engineer at a factory. He balanced his work in production with his writing. Of course, his primary focus was literature. He published scientific fiction works such as "Amazing Light," "Shadow of the Invisible," and "Seventh Wave." He wrote complex works about the various secrets of the industry he was involved in and the people working there.

He wrote the novel "Echo," which depicts the life and flow of life in the ore-rich Altai, where gold, silver, and zinc are extracted. Later, he wrote the sequel titled "Kömbe."

Since 1988, the writer's biography has been published under titles such as "Satpayev," "Kazakh's Kanishy," "Land of Kanesh," (in Russian "Rodina Satpaeva"), "Planet Satpayev," "Unique Talent," "Phenomenon," "Locked Biography," and "Through Thorns to Satpayev." Including its second publication in 2003 from Moscow in the "ZhZL" series, and its inclusion in the collections published in 2006 and 2015, M. Sarseke's biography has been published 15 times, with a total circulation of 340,000 copies.

Two biographies of M. Sarseke published between 2005 and 2015 – "Unique Boketov" and "The Targeted Historian" ("Bekmakhanov") – each have been reprinted 6 times in both Kazakh and Russian languages.

The writer also introduced another name to his readers. It was a complex work titled "Gibratty Gūyir" in the series "Gibratty Gūyir." Here, he narrates the difficult and complex fate and life history of Ebiney Arystanuly Beketov, an academician of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Kazakhstan and a remarkable scientist.

Before his eightieth anniversary, Medeu Sapauly published a thick book titled "Semey Tragedy," which is nearly 900 pages long.

M. Sarseke also engaged in the drama genre. Since 1968, seven dramas have emerged from his prolific pen. The drama "Time's Judgment," written on special commission, was shown several times on the screen in the form of a television play by the Kazakh television studio in 1989, on the eve of K. I. Satpayev's 90th birthday. The writer's most popular works in this genre include "Chinggis Saga," "Explosion," "Legal Marriage," and "The Woman in the Tender." The comedy "Legal Marriage" was staged 600 times at the Semey Theater between 1983 and 2006. Regarding this event, the "Egemen Kazakhstan" newspaper published a review titled "A Poor Play Cannot Be Staged 600 Times."

In 2018-2019, on the eve of the 175th anniversary of the great poet Abai Kunanbaev, he initiated the "Abai World" project, leading its editorial board. In 2021, the writer published his work "From the Heights of Eighty-Five" through the "Foliant" publishing house. In 2018, with the support of the East Kazakhstan region's governor, the "Abai World" library project was implemented, within which the novels "Explosion" and "Treasure" were published. In 2025, as part of the "Abai Way" library project supported by Abai region, his scientific fiction stories and tales were published.

He was awarded the "Honor" order (2001), the "For Labor Valor" medal, and the Honorary Certificate of the Supreme Council of Kazakhstan. He was an academician of the International Academy of Information, an honorary professor at the East Kazakhstan State Technical University, a holder of the "Honor" and "Parasat" orders, and an honorary citizen of Semey city and Bayanaul district.

Medeu Sapauly passed away on March 21, 2024.