In this book, Benedict Sarnov, continuing his “confession of the son of the century,” talks about people whose meetings and intimacy played an important role in his life and largely determined his fate. Among them are writers of the older generation: Ilya Erenburg, Viktor Shklovsky, Korney Chukovsky, Samuil Marshak, as well as the author’s peers and senior comrades: Naum Korzhavin, Boris Birger, Bulat Okudzhava, Boris Balter, Alexander Galich, Arkady Belinkov. A special role was played in the author’s life, acquaintance with A. Solzhenitsyn, the experience of communicating with whom was rather negative, but no less important for the formation of his personality. Other bright figures appearing on the pages of this book, representing the artistic life of Russia in the 20th century: L. Yu. Brik, V.N. Pluchek, Alla Demidova, Igor Kvasha...B. Sarnov’s first book of memoirs ended in 1953, with the death of Stalin. In the second book, the author brings his narrative to the present day.