Today it is difficult to write about the war - about the Great Patriotic War. Because a lot has already been written and told, because now there are almost no people left who remember her. Writing for teenagers is doubly difficult. The modern younger generation seems to be interested in completely different things... It turns out not! It was the teenagers who gave this book first place in the All-Russian competition for the best literary work for children and youth “Kniguru”. It was from them that this poignant story found the most lively response. Complex, ambiguous, it sometimes turns the soul inside out, but also makes you better feel and understand what happened. They will appear before your eyes: waist-deep in mud and snow, partisans escorting frightened policemen, exchanging grenades from the Germans for the famous Lendlease stew, desperately wanting warm up and eat. Here is Dimka, who lost his family in the first days of the war, took up arms and dreams of finally opening an account for the killed Krauts. Here is the daring Sanych, bewitched by a gypsy from a bullet and a photo frame, a chatterbox and a fighter from God, afraid of only three things: betrayal, the trampler from old wives' tales and the strict girl Alevtina. And here is Kovalets, carefully smoothing his hair with a smart comb, but a brave and desperate warrior. Or Shurik, nicknamed Shchury, dreaming of finally getting his first pistol... The twentieth century closed its doors, taking with it millions of lives, which took millions of wars. But Sanych, Kovalets, Alka and many others are looking at us through the gunpowder smoke. Who are they? Hard to tell. One thing is clear: they are all a cloud regiment. “Cloud Regiment” is a modern book about war and its heroes, a book about destinies, about duty and, of course, about the courage to live. A book written in the canons of Russian youth prose, but boldly overstepping these canons. The lack of “heroism”, simplicity, understatement, ordinariness of WAR put this book on a par with the best works of the twentieth century. In addition to “Kniguru”, “Cloud Regiment” was also awarded with prizes. V. Krapivin and them. P. Bazhov, was included in the long list of the Prize named after. I.P. Belkin and shortlisted for the Prize named after. L. Tolstoy "Yasnaya Polyana".