Kto On? [Who Is He?]

Moscow and Leningrad: Gos. Izd-vo detsoi lit-ry (Detgiz), 1943. First Edition.

Children's poem about a rich tourist visiting the Soviet Union. He's impressed with all the buildings, ships, theatres, sports grounds, and factories that carry the name Komsomol. So, he figures, these must all belong to a rich guy like himself, Mr. Komsomol! Alas (for him), there's no Mr. Komsomol. Instead, the Komsomol was, of course, the Young Communist League.

The author, Samuil Marshak (1887-1964), was one of the biggest names in Soviet children's poetry. The talented graphic artist Adrian Ermolaev (1900-1977) contributed the rich illustrations here.

Detgiz, the State Publishing House of Children's Literature, issued this work; Marshak was the first chief editor of Detgiz. Text entirely in Russian.

While ostensibly a poem for children, there's undoubtedly a message here for adults, too: Just look at everything the Komsomol and the Party do for Soviet children and society. And see how foreigners are so impressed by Soviet achievements (even if they're confused about Mr. Komsomol.) The poem really drives home the point that the collective (in this case, the Komsomol) is more important than the individual.

PHYSICAL DETAILS: Quarto (10 3/8 x 7 3/4 inches; 264 x 198 mm), [16] pages, in stapled, illustrated wrappers (soft cover).

CONDITION: Soiling to wrappers, evidence of water staining to wrappers and to a number of pages, general handling wear. Good or better.

This work is scarce; OCLC shows a handful of institutional holdings. None in commerce.