“Burdened by Evil” is the last major work of the Strugatskys — in a way, it sums up their output, and that’s why it was written in the unmistakably Bulgakov-like manner. The interweaving of biblical plots and the sharpest modern problems; the eternal drama: a person who goes against society and sacrifices himself; the ominous figure of the Demiurge who created a world doomed to perish; unfortunate people burdened by evil accumulated over centuries… And yet there is hope and faith in the future, because at the center of the novel is the bright image of a teacher — the Teacher, with a capital T.