Russia's poets hold a special place in Russian culture, perhaps revealing more about their own country than do poets of any other nation. In this unique and wide-ranging collection of writings, contributors from the United States, Britain, and Russia examine the place of poetry in Russian culture. Through a variety of critical approaches, these scholars, translators, and poets consider a broad cross section of Russian poets from Pushkin to Brodsky, Shvarts, and Kibirov.

In her substantive introduction, Stephanie Sandler summarizes both modern Russian and Western scholarship on Russian poetry and establishes the integrating themes of the volume. The book's fifteen essays illuminate the age of Pushkin; the works of early twentieth-century poets; and the field of contemporary Russian poetry. Some essays are devoted to individual poets; others take up broader trends. In all cases, poetry is cited both in Russian and in English translation.