How Steel is Made

Author: Nikita Ostrovsky(
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-09-01
Features: Since its publication by our press, The Steel Was Tempered has gone through four editions, been printed fifty-seven times, and distributed over 2.5 million copies. The book was originally translated by Mr. Mei Yi based on the English translation by Alexey Bron, published by Xinhua Press in Shanghai in 1942. When it was taken over by our press, it was revised and supplemented by Mr. Liu Liaoyi, a Russian literature translator, according to the 1949 version published by the State Literature Publishing House of the Soviet Union. In 1958, Mr. Mei Yi made a second revision based on the English translation by Prokofyeva published by the Foreign Languages Publishing House in Moscow. The revised edition was published in 1979. In 1989, the Moscow Young Guard Publishing House published a new three-volume edition of Ostrovsky's Collected Works, with Volume I being the The Steel Was Tempered revised by the editor according to the Russian fifth edition signed and printed by the author before his death in 1936. The editor of the Collected Works believes that this revised edition has largely restored the original form of the work and "can serve as a standard text for future editions." With the consent of Mr. Mei Yi, we specially invited Mr. Cheng Wen to revise the book based on this revised edition, and Mr. Mei Yi also made some modifications to the original translation. The editor of the Collected Works also compiled and published a portion of the text that was discarded during the revision process of the novel, along with relevant archival materials, in the form of "Notes" at the end of the volume. Taking this revision as an opportunity, we translated the "Notes" and attached them to the end of the book for reference. It should be noted that these materials are only for readers to understand some aspects of the revision process of the work and are no longer part of the author's revised version. Compared to the original draft, the revised version has distinct differences in both ideology and art, and the two should not be confused. The Steel Was Tempered, as a classic, refers to the author's revised version. The noble ideals, steel-like will, selfless dedication, and the spirit of striving for victory without rest of Pavlo have become a valuable treasure of all humanity. Meanwhile, The Steel Was Tempered is like a long scroll painting, artistically presenting the battle smokes of a specific era, construction scenes, ways of thinking, emotional waves, life scenes, and social customs, with unique historical significance. It has undergone the test of time for more than half a century and continues to shine with an undiminished brilliance to this day.