Gogol felt like a national writer who would stand next to his idol Pushkin and create a work that would put his name in the first rank of Russian writers. And this work became the poem “Dead Souls”. The historian and censor who allowed “Dead Souls” to go into print, A. V. Nikitenko wrote to Gogol on April 1, 1842: “I can’t resist saying a few heartfelt words to you, and these heartfelt words are nothing more than an expression of delight for your superb creation. What a deep look into the very depths of our lives! What a delight of genuine comedy, characteristic of you alone! What humor! What a masterful, relief, accurate depiction of characters!” Not a single enlightened person in Russia remained indifferent to Gogol’s new work; the book touched everyone and left no one indifferent. And in modern Russia it is not difficult to find Gogol’s characters. The book contains 104 drawings by Alexander Agin (1817–1875), which are recognized as the best illustrations for Dead Souls. The publishing layout is saved in a4.pdf format.