Teffi (1872-1952) was a popular writer in pre-Revolutionary Russia, a favorite of Tsar Nicholas II and Lenin alike. She was born to a prominent St. Petersburg family and emigrated from Bolshevik Russia in 1919. Eventually settling in Paris, she became an important figure in the émigré literary scene and lived there until her death. NYRB Classics publishes her memoir, Memories: From Moscow to the Black Sea, and the collection of stories Tolstoy, Rasputin, Others, and Me.
Robert Chandler and Elizabeth Chandler have translated many NYRB Classics.