The collection of stories and short stories by Irina Muravyova includes both works already known to readers and new ones, including “The Bear Primer,” which the magazine “New World” described as a text that presents “brilliant work with language” . The story “On the Edge” was also highly praised: it was included in the collection of 26 best works by women writers in the world. The author is not afraid to turn to the most hidden and dark sides of the human soul - where we ourselves most often prefer not to look. But an extremely honest look at the world - the writer’s calling card - unexpectedly snatches up islands of love where, it would seem, they cannot exist: behind prison bars, in the house of an alcoholic full of suffering, even in the animal soul of a circus bear.