This book presents three tales that encapsulate Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky's gift for creating philosophical, satirical, and lyrical phantasmagorias. It also includes excerpts from his notebooks-aphoristic glimpses of his worldview, moods, humor, and writing methods-and reminiscences of Krzhizhanovsky by his lifelong companion, Anna Bovshek.

Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky (1887-1950) was born in Kiev and moved to Moscow in 1922, where he became known in literary circles thanks to the readings he gave of his modernist texts. Krzhizhanovsky's creative vision ran counter to the dictates of Soviet censorship. Not until four decades after his death could his works begin to be published. His works in English translation include Countries That Don't Exist: Selected Nonfiction (Columbia, 2022).
Joanne Turnbull's translations of Krzhizhanovsky's fiction include Memories of the Future, Autobiography of a Corpse, and The Return of Munchausen.
Caryl Emerson is A. Watson Armour III University Professor Emeritus of Slavic Languages and Literatures at Princeton University and the author of many books, including The Cambridge Introduction to Russian Literature.

Introduction, by Caryl Emerson
Stravaging "Strange"
Catastrophe
Material for a Life of Gorgis Katafalaki
Krzhizhanovsky's Notebooks and Loose-Leaf Notes
Afterword
Notes