A dissident, a utopian poet and a homosexual, Yevgeny Kharitonov was a proscribed writer whose work circulated in samizdat but was never officially published in his lifetime. Kharitonov's homosexuality, which was central to his identity as a writer, gave him a unique perspective from which to write about Soviet society. A collection of autobiographical fiction, Soviet satire and essays, Under House Arrest is the first book of Kharitonov's to be published in English. It introduces to English-speaking audiences a wonderful writer who follows in the outsider tradition of Dostoevsky and Gogol. Alyosha Seryozha—A viable infant—One man's meat—A tenant applied to the housing department ... — A., R., and I—The buying of the spirograph—Tears for one strangled and dead—A Russian who doesn't drink vodka — 'How I found out' : one boy's story—Teardrops on the flowers—Flysheet—In the cold higher sense—Unprintable authors