Anatoly Sofronov, a well-known Soviet author, was a friend of Mikhail Sholokhov's for many years. Their first meeting took place before World War II, one of their latest ones—in August 1983. Throughout these years, Sofronov was closely following the work of the famous Soviet writer, trying not to miss any of his new publications, speeches or films based on his works. Sofronov describes his meetings with Sholokhov, the village of Veshenskaya where Sholokhov lived, and the writer's family and clos...