YUriy Mihaylovich Medvedev - rossiyskiy pisatel, zhurnalist, perevodchik, avtor ryada rabot po istorii Rossii, laureat Pushkinskoy premii Pravitelstva Moskvy (1999). Kniga «Russkie legendy i predaniya» otkryvaet chitatelyam zagadochnyy mir drevneslavyanskoy demonologii. V izdanii garmonichno sochetayutsya hudozhestvennye teksty i entsiklopedicheskie stati, osnovannye na folklornyh issledovaniyah.Vyrazitelnye, nasyschennye yarkimi tsvetami illyustratsii v redkom stile russkogo fentezi sozdany zamechatelnym russkim hudozhnikom, laureatom Pushkinskoy premii Viktorom Korolkovym.
Drevnie slavyane, kak i mnogie drugie narody, zhili v tesnom edinenii s prirodoy, i vsyo, chto ih okruzhalo, nadelyali chelovecheskimi svoystvami. Dlya nih odinakovo zhivymi byli zhivotnye i rasteniya, reki i kamni, derevya i oblaka. Vsem etim mirom upravlyali bogi. Oni komandovali stihiyami, nasylali na zemlyu dozhd ili znoy, povelevali vetrami i smenoy vremyon goda. A lyudi obraschalis k nim za pomoschyu i spravedlivym sudom.