Ruolf Nureyev (born Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev) was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is regarded by many as the greatest male ballet dancer of his generation.

Written shortly after his defection to the West at the height of the cold war, this autobiography is a personal and poignant remembrance of his life full of trials, failures and successes.

From a poor childhood from a remote village near Siberia, Rudolf began his career with Kirov Ballet (now called by its original name, the Mariinsky Ballet) in Leningrad. He continued to gain fame and rose in popularity in the Soviet Union until his defection in 1961.

After his defection he went on to dance with The Royal Ballet in London and from 1983 to 1989 served as director of the Paris Opera Ballet. Nureyev also worked with many of his generation's leading choreographers, including Frederick Ashton, Maurice Béjart and George Balanchine . He was also one of the first ballet stars to work with modern dance choreographers such as Martha Graham and Paul Taylor.

Tragically Nureyev died of AIDS related illness in 1993 at the age of 54.