Mikhail Evgrafovich Saltykov (N. Shchedrin) is known to today's readers mainly as the author of several textbook fairy tales, but this is far from the best of what he wrote. A writer of colossal proportions, endowed with a “crazy humorous fantasy,” Saltykov exposed the essence of phenomena and showed life from an unexpected side. It is no coincidence that for his contemporaries he became the “ruler of thoughts,” one of those who were believed, whose words excited minds, whose bitter laughter evoked response and sympathy. The texts published in this book - epistolary fragments from the “musketeer” messages of the writer himself, little-known memories of his contemporaries about him, prose and poetic responses to his death - give an idea of Saltykov not only as a brilliant artist, a socially significant person, but also as a private person. The appendix contains articles dedicated to members of the writer's family and his grandchildren. The publishing layout is saved in a4.pdf format.