Allen Ginsberg (1926–1997) was a visionary poet whose defiantly bold poems invariably had the effect of exploding like a bomb, outraging philistines and delighting hipsters, outcasts, and rebels. Along with Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs, he was a key representative and ideologist of the Beat movement; a key figure for the hippie subculture and New Age philosophy. Laureate of the US National Book Award, recipient of the Robert Frost Medal, and a Chevalier of the French Order of Arts and Letters. An active fighter for civil rights and liberties, and a fervent opponent of American government policy in the second half of the 20th century: the Vietnam War, censorship, and police brutality. A consistent supporter of the ideas of multiculturalism and the sexual revolution, and a researcher of various mystical and religious practices.

The ecstatic 'Howl' and the confessional 'Kaddish'—poetry collections that made Ginsberg famous and secured his place in the pantheon of counterculture—are published in this edition in the original and in translations by Dmitry Manin, with commentary by Dmitry Khaustov and illustrations by Zat Vornik.