Yuri Penzin, in a certain sense, is a pioneer: a Kolyma like his has never existed in the literature of the Northeast. Unlike the works of the northern “classics”, in which the North was romanticized to one degree or another, here we encounter harsh realistic prose. The author does not turn a blind eye to the unsightly sides of reality, to manifestations of cruelty and greed, cowardice and meanness. However, after reading the stories there is no feeling of hopelessness, since everything evil and base in them is always opposed by generosity and selflessness. That is why, after reading, one does not feel the desire to fold one’s hands out of helplessness, but to actively fight in the name of goodness and justice.