The heroes of Anatoly Aleksin's stories live with an intense rhythm of the heart - in the literal and figurative sense... An exceptional feature of his works is a rare combination of drama and plot dynamics, humor, kind and merciless at the same time - and an infectious, all-conquering love of life. The book also includes stories created in recent years and unknown to the Russian reader ("Alien" man", "Bastards", "Epidemic", "Guarantor", and for "younger reader friends" - the story "It all started with a bicycle" - a new story about the summer adventures of Sasha, Shura and their friends, who do not sit idle even during the holidays...