Each volume measures 10" x 7" x 1 ½", total weight nearly 6 lbs., 415 and 422 pp, respectively. Hardcover with embossed ornament and the author's signature facsimile in gold lettering. Printed in the M. Stanyulevich Printing Factory, St. Petersburg. With the poet's lithographic portrait and signature facsimile. The text is in pre-reform Russian orthography containing currently obsolete letters. Circulation unknown. Both tomes feature ink stamps in Russian and French of the library of the RUSSKAYA MYSL ("The Russian Thought") Publishing House in Constantinople. Apparently, these books emigrated from Russia at some point. The body of work is prefaced by the publisher's note, the author's autobiographic essay and his 1866 poetic dedication of this book to Her Imperial Majesty Maria Alexandrovna (wife of Emperor Alexander II). The design of the pages is spacious and very easy to read, each page of text inside an elegant frame of thin lines in red. The first volume covers the period between 1855 - 1865, the second - 1866 - 1875. The index for the entire 2-volume edition is at the end of vol. 2.

In good condition. The spines have suffered the most: the spine of vol. 1 is completely separated but present and will be shipped inserted inside vol. 1. The spine of vol. 2 is only partially separated. Fortunately, sturdy fabric was used for the spine liner instead of gauze. It is still mostly intact and holding the textblock together very well. The covers have considerable wear, mostly at the corners of the boards, the latter a little frayed once the leatherette had worn off. However, this damage looks minor against the overall size and volume of the tomes and is not very detractive. The textblock of both volumes is in very good condition, showing just very mild and even age toning and an occasional tiny spot of staining. Overall, a quick and easy repair to the spines will return the books to very good condition, to be enjoyed for many more years.

The Tolstoy dynasty, of old Russian nobility and very close to the Russian Imperial court starting with that of Peter the Great, gave the world three major literary talents: Lev Nikolayevich (known among English speakers as Leo Tolstoy), Aleksey Nikolayevich (Russian and Soviet writer, mostly famous for his novel "Peter the First") and Aleksey Konstantinovich, poet, writer, publicist, satirist, playwright. Born in 1817, he died in 1875. Some of his prose and poetic works, were written in French and German. As was typical of Russian nobility, Tolstoy was completely fluent in French, German, English, Italian, Ukranian and Polish, and was especially enamored by the German language, composing in it frequently. He also translated some of the works by Heine, Goethe, Lord Byron and some others, as well as his own works originally written in Russian. On a less serious note, he co-authored aphorisms, witticisms, fables and literary parodies under the collective pseudonym "Kozma Prutkov". Many of those aphorisms are still widely in use by Russian speakers. Here's one of those witticisms: "If it says RABBIT on the cage with a tiger inside, do not believe your eyes!"