What was Leo Tolstoy’s first published work, appearing in 1852?

Childhood was Leo Tolstoy’s first published work, appearing in 1852.

Tolstoy published Childhood anonymously in the literary journal Sovremennik in 1852. The autobiographical novel follows Nikolai Irtenev, a young boy whose perceptions of family, servants, affection, embarrassment, and loss shape his understanding of the world.

The book is the first part of a planned trilogy. Its companions are Boyhood, published in 1854, and Youth, published in 1857. Although the trilogy draws on Tolstoy’s experiences, Nikolai is a fictional character and the books are not a literal autobiography.

Childhood already shows Tolstoy’s interest in close psychological observation. Instead of presenting childhood as a simple period of innocence, it examines how a child notices status, emotion, hypocrisy, and changing relationships. The work established Tolstoy as a promising young writer before his later military stories and major novels.