In the new novel of Mikhail Шишкина "Письмовник", on the face of it, all is simple: he, she. Letters. Summer residence. First love. But a fate does not love simple plots. A sheet in an envelope blows up the world, connection of times breaks. Passing becomes a present: Shakespeare and Easily Soiled Hollow, adventures of arctic pilot and taking by the Russian troops of Beijing. Falling in love go to meet each other, to bind by itself the torn time. It is a novel about a secret. That death - the same gift, as well as love.