Russia Books

it's great! never use another reference book!

Ruth Freeman Soloman's novel is well worth checking out. The historical setting of Czarist Russia in the late 1800's comes alive in this episodic tale of the Von Glasman family. The issues of the status of Jews in Russia gives the tale significance and depth. During the rumblings of the coming communist revolution, there was political intrigue with Rasputin and an anti-Semetic mood in Russia. The Christian Church and the struggle of the rabbis during this period come alive in the supporting characters. Ronya Von Glassman is the heir of a wealthy Jewish family with cultivated political influence. She marries Boris Pirov, the blond strapping Tartar who swashbuckles through the novel. Their passionate married life results a family of two sons with Boris' illegitimate son called "The Blond One" from a fling with the Tamara, the Queen of the Gypsies. Son Igor goes to Manchuria for several chapters; and the Russian role in that Chinese province is the backdrop for more of the story. This long epic tale moves well and has you constantly reaching to find out what happens next. The characters come alive and stay with you, long after they've headed for San Francisco. I had a great time with this book. It's well with searching out!

Bravo! Another winning book by Larry Domnitch. Read it in one sitting because it was so good I couldn't put it down. Well researched!

.... when I pardon, I pardon. That's the way I am.'

This love story with its fairy tale ending was charming to me despite the horrors of the historical rise of a usurper to the rightful throne in Russia. It's hero survives on the basis of a chance encounter and generosity. But there is a greater 'luck' to come at the end of the story.

I saw this book in the bookstore of the Pompidou (which could be one of the better modern art bookstores in the world). The photos are fantastic, very human and each one tells a story of a life that none of us can imagine. As great as the photographs are, the text at the end of the book enriched the experience far more - it gives you a context for his photography, how contrived the censorship could be (and how funny - the story about the tennis court is hilarious). The bottom line is that you get to see something that nobody else has photographed, in a high quality format, that will educate you and give you something more than the typical horror stories of the former Soviet Gulag system. If you're like me and you love photography that is unique and really MEANS something, buy this book!

Firstly let me begin by stating that I have read this work cover to cover three times and several chapters many times more. It is the best I have read to date and I have nearly every work (in English) on the Caspian - in regards to energy expliotation there is, so I do speak from a position of knowledge.

Although printed in early 2000 I did not get my copy until mid 2000. Compared to other works this is in a league of its own - both for content and the broad range of contributors. One of the things that bug me about works on the Caspian region is that IRan is relegated to a passing comment - because America's influence or its pipeline mentality seems to overcome other writers. This does work does not. Iran is central through this work.

Divided into 5 sections, with 16 chapters, this work natually being an edited work allows the reader to pick and choose sections or chapters to read. I particularly enjoyed the emphaise throughout the work on Iran - it was even-handed in its measure - which is what you would expect.

As with other works there is a section on the legal perspective of the Caspian and the chapter by Mirfendereski is very good - providing insights I have not come across in other works or articles.

The work is nearly 300 pages in length including notes, and was worth all of the $..... I paid for it - hardcover and a falling Australian Dollar did not help. This book is for those already with a reasonable knowledge of the region and with that in mind other introductory works such as Amineh or Crossiant/Bulents works may be better suited for the novice - of course there will always be overlaps between similar works but by far this is the best yet.

Part of the reason why I enjoyed this work so much is that it focuses on littoral communities of the region (and a brief chapter to America as well)(can't get away from them ) so in that regard it is not an all in one compendium, and there is a strong emphasis throughout the work on the actual Caspian Sea itself - as well as the energy reserves. It is a good book and worth the money.

An awesome portrayal of one of Russia's most misunderstood matriarchs. A great read.

This book provides a hefty portion of Russian history, politics, religion, and diplomacy in its crisp 221 pages. Professor Dunn deliberately and stylistically uses each sentence to inform, provoke, and maintain a book length that is manageable for most readers. In a scope that spans from around the year 988 until shortly before the death of Pope John Paul II, Dunn gives the reader a well-researched view of the Russian government's treatment (and maltreatment) of the Catholic Church within the country's ever-changing borders under the rule of tsarists, Communists, and reformers.

Dunn demonstrates that religion affects the workings of governments, even those that profess to be atheistic. Throughout Russia's history its leaders attempted to take what they viewed as good from the Catholic Church and leave that which did not fit their intensions to the rest of the world. They also engaged, and continue to engage, in a debilitating game of pitting the Russian Orthodox Church against the Catholic Church. Their flawed strategies allowed other European countries to outpace Russia in areas of education, liberty and religious freedom. Russia continues to play catch up. The book's concluding chapter left me with the protruding question: what would Russia be like today had its relationship with the Catholic Church been different?

I enjoyed this book and learned a lot from it; how did the Soviet Union manage the concept of luxury, which would seem to be antithetical to communism? The book is well written and full of good historical detail; it also has intellgent theoretical analysis. I would use it in a class on consumer culture.

This book recounts the third of the five chapters in the half-decade long rivalry which erupted between Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov. In the eyes of many this conflict symbolised the clash between the Brezhnev-inspired forces of reaction in the old USSR and the new Gorbachev/Yeltsin-driven imperatives of perestroika and glasnost which ultimately led to the collapse of the creaking Soviet empire. This match was held in London and Leningrad and was the first all-Soviet summit to be staged outside the USSR! Books on the Karpov-Kasparov clashes of 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1990 are also published by Hardinge Simpole.
David Goodman is an International Master who resides in New York. During the Karpov-Kasparov clashes David worked as a correspondent in Moscow, London and Leningrad enjoying unrivalled access to behind-the-scenes information. He has, amongst many other publications, co-authored three books on Kasparov's matches against Karpov.

Raymond Keene is a British Chess Champion, and the first British Player to achieve a FIDE (World Chess Federation) Grandmaster norm. He was awarded the OBE for services to chess in 1985. He is Chess Correspondent of The Times, The Sunday Times, The Spectator, and The International Herald Tribune. He is a prolific author of chess books, several of which are classics of the genre. He was Chief Organiser of the London leg of the 1986 Championship Match.


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