At age 17, Joseph Jughashvili (later Stalin) surprised his seminary peers by writing Romantic Georgian verse under the pen name “Soselo.” In 1895 the prominent poet Ilia Chavchavadze published five of his poems in the Tiflis journal Iveria. This collection assembles Stalin’s earliest literary efforts. The verses themselves – simple odes to morning, lilies and rural scenes – reflect Stalin’s early intellectual milieu rather than any revolutionary agenda. They were originally written in Georgian; Stalin never claimed them after he became a Bolshevik. This edition contains the following poems: To the moon (1895) To Rafiel Eristov himself (1895) To the poet, singer of peasant labor, Prince Rafael Eristavi (1895) A vial full of poison (1895) He walked from house to house (1895) And hopes will be revived (1895) When the moon shines (1895) Morning (1895) Old Ninika (1896) This modern Critical Reader’s Edition includes an illuminating afterword tracing Stalin's intellectual relationships with revolutionary philosophers and politicians (including Hegel, Feuerbach, Engels, and Ricardo), containing unique research into his intellectual development and economic-metaphysical theories, religious impulses masquerading as materialism, a comprehensive timeline of his life and works, a glossary of Lenin-Stalinist terminology, and a detailed index of his work works. Combined with the scholarly amplifying material, this professional translation is an indispensable exploration of Stalin’s world-changing philosophy which he manifested into one of the most terrifying authoritarian regimes ever created.