This book is about a child, a semi-orphan, with an absentee mother, who was a professional athlete. The child grew up in a communist system without much parental guidance or supervision. It is a story about a weed that grew up into a flower, built a remarkable professional career, but then became a victim of the repressive political system controlled by the KGB. The book is about surviving in the communist system and escaping to the West. The book is a contrast between two worlds, two different political systems, one with liberty and personal freedom, and the other - without. All the events described in the book are historically accurate.