Vadim Kozovoy (1937-1999) - Russian poet, translator, essayist, spent six years in the Soviet Gulag. In 1981, he had to make a difficult choice - "get out of obedience": while on a temporary trip to France, he decides to stay there forever. He talks about the first years (1981-1982) of painful getting used to another foreign language culture, about attempts to "become a bridge" between two great literatures in his diary letters. In addition to letters, the collection includes poems by V. Kozovoy, selected by himself for the book "Away from the Hill," beautiful illustrations for which were once made by Henri Michaud. The last major translation work of V. Kozovoy - a cycle of poems in prose by A. Michaud "Darkened" completes the book.