In 1820, Pushkin visited the famous Fountain of Tears in Crimea, where he read about the ancient Crimean khans and rulers. Shrouded in secrets and legends, the ancient building impressed the young poet so much that he decided to write a poem about it. The resulting tale is a sad and tragic outcome of the sharp contradictions between the characters' expectations in the Khan’s palace. Reality and dreams cannot coexist, and everyone has to pay a bitter price for their cherished desires. A profound and historically thrilling poem that is definitely worth its reading.
Deservedly labelled "the best Russian poet", Pushkin’s short life (1799-1837) did not prevent him from ushering Russian literature into its modern era. A master of the vernacular language and multifarious and vivid writing style, Pushkin’s oeuvre was of great influence to a whole legion of Russian writers and literary styles. Among his best-known works are the narrative poems "Ruslan and Ludmila" and "Eugene Onegin", the drama "Boris Godunov", several novels, short stories, and fairy tales.