Robert Silverberg is a Grandmaster of science fiction, holder of 6 Nebulas, 5 Hugos, 8 Locus Awards, and another dozen awards of various kinds. In the early period of his writing, Silverberg didn’t neglect any genre—he wrote nonfiction, detective stories, and erotica. In 1967–1976, he completely focused on science fiction, earning love from both readers of “hard” SF and fans of fantasy sagas.
The story takes place in the distant future, when Earth’s civilization is in decline. Human society is divided into castes based on non-interference in each other’s affairs and strict separation of activities. Rulers, Chroniclers, Surgeons, and Aeronauts perform their duties while paying no attention to representatives of other castes.