The new collection of stories by Ulyana Menshikova is always sincere, full of both funny and sad, always non-fictional, sometimes phantasmagorical everyday life writing. Enduring love of life, mockery mixed with good nature, love for people, self-irony and, most importantly, good spirits - the author extends to the reader the hand of a good comrade and cheerful interlocutor. BBK 84(2Rosu003dRus)6ISBN 978-5- 9500470-6-0IS Р19-819-0692Approved for distribution by the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church © Ulyana Menshikova ( “Alavaster” ( On the cover is the painting “Concert in the Egg”, artist Hieronymus Bosch “The rarest luck, called the Gift of God, has always been a sign of the spring purity of truly Russian Literature, completely devoid of false-mannered literaryism .I will gladly accept this I find in the old and new “stories” of Ulyana Menshikova - extremely simple, sincere, full of both funny and sad, always non-fictional, sometimes phantasmagorical, everyday life writing.” Yuz Aleshkovsky, Russian prose writer, poet and screenwriter, songwriter “Reading can be different. Sometimes it is intellectual work, sometimes it is emotionally exhausting workload. But often a person needs consolation. You need someone to cheer you up, to dispel your blues, to simply send a signal “hey, don’t be sour, you’re not alone here.” In such a state, there is no better reading than the stories of Ulyana Menshikova. Enduring love of life, mockery mixed with good nature, love for people, self-irony and, most importantly, good spirits - Menshikova extends to the reader the hand of a good comrade and cheerful interlocutor." Avdotya Smirnova, Russian screenwriter, film director, publicist " Ulyana Menshikova writes about people. There is very little of her in the book. I once remembered how two smart women gave advice to one young poetess: “Try to think about others. Tell me about them. Believe me: there is nothing interesting in all of us (us, you, old, young). And they have it!” Ulyana was not given this advice, but she follows it.” Dmitry Vodennikov, poet, essayist