The detachment of Vasyok Trubachyov—and with it the whole 4-B class—was awarded a trip to Ukraine, to a collective farm called “Chervoni Zirky.” The boys spend their time cheerfully and engagingly: they run to swim in the river, make friends with local pioneers, go to a neighboring village, prepare for a multi-day hike, and keep a diary, “About the life of our detachment,” describing all the important events happening in their lives. But carefree vacations don’t last long. On June 22, 1941, the Great Patriotic War began—forcing yesterday’s schoolchildren to grow up overnight.