Childhood is the first in a trilogy of autobiographical novels (the others are On Earth and My University) that Gorky based on his own experiences. It tells the story of Alyosha's (Gorky's breast name) childhood life from the age of three to the age of ten, vividly reproduces the living conditions of the lower class people of the former Soviet Union in the 1970s and 80s of the 19th century, and writes Gorky's understanding of suffering and unique insights into the social life of the world, which is surging with an unending stream of fervent hope and strength between the lines.