Russian writers are being condemned and denigrated by their government for writings considered unfavorable to the Soviet way of life. With this in mind, Selig O. Wassner determined to bring into being a collection of stories by Russian writers in order to give the American reader a closer look at Russian life during the first sixty-six years of this century. The authors represented in this volume mirrored the times in which they lived by depicting ordinary people in their everyday pursuits. Among the stories, we find one about a soldier waiting - waiting for a letter from his sweetheart that doesn't arrive. Tormented with self-doubt, he slips into jealous fantasies - all is lost; he will return home, he's sure, to nothing.