This collection includes lyric poems by Marina Tsvetaeva, written between 1917 and 1940, the era of her greatest creative flourishing and literary maturity. These years fully revealed Tsvetaeva's uncompromising character, as well as the uniqueness of her poetic gift, the significance of which, in the heat of political and literary wars, was not always appreciated by her contemporaries, both in Soviet Moscow and in 'Russian' Paris. Nevertheless, despite misunderstanding and loneliness, alone 'for all' and alone 'against all,' Tsvetaeva truly became 'the leader of her destiny' (as Bella Akhmadulina wrote) and took a leading place among the greatest poets of the 20th century.