A novelist catches up with his future... a president is under house arrest after setting off a nuclear war... an off-planet skipper leads a hunt for a mysterious life-giving creature... a single mother protects her disabled son... a man finds serenity in his vacation-emptied city... a woman looks for love in silence... a thunderstorm turns lives upside down... an oligarch makes a unexpected career change... a detective solves a murder and doesn t like what he finds... a family copes with Russia s medieval future... a traveler grapples with Pushkin s killer... a disaffected son mourns his mother... These are just some of the stories in this wonderful collection of original works by 19 leading Russian writers. They are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination. Masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today, these tales reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book will go to benefit Russian hospice -- not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.