First edition thus. In original unclipped dust-wrapper 637 pp.. Jacket designed by James Lucas. Publisher’s book mark listing ‘principal characters’ loosely inserted. In very good condition but dust-wrapper chipped along all edges and inch high tear to back of wrapper. Otkrytaya kniga (”Open Book”) was first published in the U.S.S.R. in 1953. English translation by Brian Pearce. A trilogy about micro-biologists which became very popular and eventually became a film and a TV series. Veniamin Alexandrovich Kaverin (1902 - 1989) Вениамин Александрович Каверин, born Veniamin Abelevich Zilber. Kaverin was a member of the literary group ‘Serapion Brothers’ which included Zamyatin, Zoschenko and Shklovskiy. Trotsky apparently called them “young and naive”.