Aleksandr Druzhinin

Shestiklassnik Vitja Scheglov, oslushavshis zapreta, unes iz zabroshennogo doma zagadochnuju statuetku. Razve mog on znat, chto v rezultate etogo v nash mir khlynet Zlo? Smozhet li Vitja s druzjami spravitsja so svirepym Shurshunom, uzhasnymi mertvymi golovami i drugimi monstrami, javivshimisja s toj storony, otyskat tainstvennogo Chernogo Korolja i spasti mir?

This volume offers two of Druzhinin's essential works in their first English translations. Polinka Saks, his most essential short novel, is an epistolary tale of a romantic triangle involving an older man, his young wife, and a dashing young prince. The husband attempts to introduce his wife to literature, art, and music, but his efforts run counter to the dominant trend of society, which forces women to become little children. The wife falls victim to the prince and realizes too late the value of the education provided by her husband. A far different tale, The Story of Aleksei Dmitrich is a complex social and psychological study of poverty, family disharmony, precocious children, and destructive self-sacrifice.