Mikhail Goluben completed his studies at Teachers' College in 1939, then joined the Red Army where, upon reaching the rank of lieutenant, he was sent to the front. He was taken prisoner-of-war twice and managed to escape both times. The second time he was taken to Germany, where, as a result of discussions with people from the West, he decided not to return to his homeland. He migrated to Australia three years later. In Australia, he worked as a labourer and read and wrote poetry in his free time. Together with the artist who illustrated his first book, L. P. Linevich, he bought a press from a defunct Russian newspaper, and typeset and printed his own books. He was interviewed on SBS TV in September 1982 and has participated and won awards in the two Festivals of Russian Poets in Melbourne. His work has been read on the Russian program of Radio 2EA and at evenings organised by the Russian Society for Sciences and Art, the Pushkin Society and the Russian Club. He has also produced two radio documentaries on Australian Aborigines and their legends.