Ms Larisa Novitskaya was born on February 10, 1946 in Bolshaja Slepnia village (now Minsk). Her mother, Nina Novitskaya, worked as a technician at the observatory.
As a child, the girl fell seriously ill and spent almost four years under treatment in a children's sanatorium, while continuing to study the school curriculum. The consequences of the disease left an imprint on her health, but this did not stop Larisa to realize her potential.
Immediately after leaving school in 1964, she entered the Library Faculty at the Minsk Pedagogical Institute (now the M. Tank Belarusian State Pedagogical University).
Having received higher education in 1968, Ms Novitskaya was assigned to the State Library of the BSSR named after V.I. Lenin, and devoted her entire professional life to it, which is almost 50 years. In the department of Belarusian literature and bibliography, she started as a librarian and became Head of the Sector.
Ms Novitskaya is the second from the left in the lower row
Ms Novitskaya was an excellent bibliographer, participated in the preparation of the collection "BSSR in the Press of the USSR and Foreign Socialist Countries," was the compiler of the bibliographic directory "Library Science in Belarus of the 16th century to 1917." (1982), "Doctoral and Ph.D. dissertations on historical sciences of BSSR", 1944-1987(1988) and others.
Together with Nina Vatatzi, Ms Novitskaya worked on the composition of science auxiliary indicator “Belorussian Soviet Drama, 1966–1986” (1993).
The high professional level and profound knowledge allowed Ms Novitskaya to render systematic and consultation aid the libraries of the country on different questions, and first of all – on the regional study.
Colleagues and management described Ms Novitskaya as very ingenious, responsible and talented person. Ms Evgenia Galievskaya in her book “Belarusians”. To the History of the Belarusian Literature Department of the National Library of Belarus: Part 3. The employees recall Ms Novitskaya as follows: “She had a special talent in communicating with readers, she fulfilled most exquisite, requests searches, perfectly mastered the method of bibliographic search – written references for specialized legal advice for "Belinyurkalegia" were made only by Ms Novitskaya. Knowledge of the collection, search systems, the ability to use the right sources always yielded fruitful results. A very modest, responsible person, my teacher, role model, a person of exceptional memory. They called her a "living dictionary", a real "library Sherlock Holmes".
After the retirement, Ms Novitskaya continued to work in the Library until 2012.
The staff of the National Library of Belarus wholeheartedly congratulates Ms Novitskaya on her anniversary and wishes her good health, long life and inexhaustible vital energy!
Bibliology Research Department
Read about the veterans and employees of the National Library of Belarus in the news section “Our History: a Portrait Gallery.”
