In January 1902, a small brochure was published for the first time with the lengthy title "Karl May as Educator and The Truth about Karl May or Karl May's Opponents in Their Own Light," credited to "a grateful May reader." This document holds a special place in May's confrontations with his literary opponents, as the "grateful reader" was none other than Karl May himself, who anonymously accounted for the higher, educational intent of his writing and simultaneously outlined a program that he intended to pursue consistently in his later works. Volume 86 of the Collected Works now presents this further enlightening source for the changes in the life and work of the great storyteller after 1900, following the polemics in Volume 85. Additionally, May included an appendix of 178 letters from readers, although mostly.