A collection of folklore and original works written in the absurdist genre.

"Nisenitsa, or 500 Years of Russian Absurd" is one of the books compiled by writer Vitaly Babenko. He previously worked on the publications "Tales of Rebellions and Truffles: Unprecedented Russian Fantasy Prose of the 18th-19th Centuries" and "Ghosts from All Sides: Extraordinary Russian Fantasy Prose of the 19th Century."

This collection is dedicated to one of the oldest literary genres—the absurd. The publication includes both original works and examples of folklore: tales, fables, fables, songs, stories, and much more. All texts are presented in the form in which they were first published.

In the preface, the compiler explains the meaning of the enigmatic word "nisenitnitsa" and examines the qualities and history of absurdist literature, constructing a complex system of color principles—amaranth, beige, blue, umber, mignonette, and wild. As a result, all the shades come together to form the most complete definition of the absurd as a phenomenon that arose in ancient literature and reflects a "reverse," inverted world in which the logic of life is disrupted and humanity is placed in a markedly unreal environment. The collection devotes special attention to laughter and the culture of laughter—inseparable elements of the genre.

An important part of the publication are the charcoal illustrations by artist Oleg Kuznetsov.