Nora Gal is one of the bright names among the brilliant galaxy of Russian writers who created a world-recognized school of literary translation. She earned her fame by introducing us to Saint-Exupéry’s “The Little Prince.” Nora Gal’s invaluable achievement is her outstanding translations of masterpieces of modern world literature. “A Living Word and a Dead One” is a synthesis of many years of work by both Nora Gal herself and her wonderful colleagues. At the same time, this work goes far beyond the issues of translation as such. By analyzing typical mistakes that slip into prose and journalism on radio and television—and contrasting them with brilliant examples of living Russian speech—it makes an invaluable contribution to the struggle for purity and dignity of the Russian language that is so relevant today.