Vadim L. Rabinovich is known to the Russian-speaking audience as the author of «Alchemy as a Phenomenon of Medieval Culture» first published in 1976 and recently appeared in second edition. In his interview to the Journal V. Rabinovich speaks about the hurdles he faced while publishing the first edition, makes explicit his understanding of the meaning of alchemy as cultural phenomenon, and explains the reasons for using a special «literary» style in his writings. He gives some particular details about his scholarly and literary career in the history of science.