Russia Books

this was a wonderful novel,and if u have any interest in imperial russia you will be very interested in this book.

I adored this book! Emily is the last book in the Kirov saga, after Anna and Fleur, and in my opinion, the best of the trilogy. It takes place in the declining years of Imperial Russia, and the Revolution. If you liked Anna and Fleur, you'll love Emily!

This book fills the gap that the Gulag Series is missing...The Personal Views..Much of the books on the gulag are scholarly estimates and observations, without the first hand eyewitness to the events. This book is created from exceprts from little heard of books about the Gulag published throughout its history, from the Time of The Great purge up To the Time when cold war tensions were "Loosening Up", when in fact the same hard conditions persisted...
The books writing quality as a whole is very good, the book is intresting and intriging to read, and also conveys deep details and vivid descriptions of the Gulag...Very much recommended to all readers.

"Enemies of the State" provides a riveting look into the slave-labor prisons of the Communist world during several decades of the 20th century. It brings history alive to a whole new generation of Americans who may be only vaguely aware of the oppression, torture and viciousness imposed on their countrymen by totalitarian leaders like Stalin, Mao, and Castro. The book contains 10 first-person accounts by people who spent years wrongfully imprisoned in slave-labor camps. Very much like the first-person accounts of Jews held in German concentration camps during the Holocaust, "Enemies of the State" also includes historical background and explanations of the political themes of the times. The book is factual and compelling for anyone over the age of 12. It is a great resource for high school or college students, and teachers and college professors. The general public will also find this book to be fascinating reading, although it is not for anyone with a weak stomach. The tortures and degradations described in the book are beyond imagination, but they are real and are presented in painful and vivid detail. Anyone with a love of history, however, will find this book to be an important addition to their library. I highly recommend it for youths and adults, and I especially encourage home schoolers to consider including this book in their studies.

Unless you are a history major from a very enlighten University I doubt you know even part of the history of the Christian Church and the Jewish People. This book opens a window into the soul of the relationship of the failure of the "Religion of Christianity" to minister the teachings of Jesus Christ to the Jewish People and it is long past time for individual Christians (and those within the organized Christian Church) to put the Teachings of Jesus (Yeshua) into POSITIVE ACTION toward God's Covenant People! The "Religion of Christianity" as practiced by too many in this world has led the way to anti-Semitism if not turned a blind eye to it and it is time for Christians to hold up Israel, the Jewish People Worldwide, Bless Them and Pray for them as this book so eloquently shows! If you believe in the word of God then this book is a must read!!!

This is a MUST READ for anyone who has a heart for the nation and people of Israel. Mr. Goll does an outstanding job in relating the history of the Jewish people as well as compel the reader to respond to the current, critical situation of the Jewish people in Israel and around the world. This book has prompted me to take on a fervency in prayer for Israel, as well as look for opportunities in my community to stand in solidarity with our Jewish brothers and sisters.

Thank you, Jim Goll, for giving us such wonderful information.

Like Melvyn Leffler, Zubok believes that Soviet decision making was constrained by ideology and personality. Zubok writes that ideology formed the basis for Stalins decisions regarding Germany. Stalin thought that his proposals for a neutral Germany and socialism in Eastern Germany would be enough for the Germans to flock to the Soviet cause. When this did not proved out to be true, Stalin militarized Eastern Europe for fear of a Western Germany with Western backing. Khruschev did not want to end the Cold War because he thought that Communism would eventually triumph and that he force the West to back down through the fear of nuclear war. Brezhnev implented detente because he feared war, but when he became ill, hard liners took over decision making and invaded Afghanistan. Gorbachev abandoned hardline Communist ideology and thought that a type of European Social Democracy would take over Eastern and this led to the Soviets leaving Eastern Europe in 1989. Hopefully Zubok along with Leffler and Tony Judt will get rid of the myth that Reagans's arm build up and hardline ideology was responsible for ending the Cold War.

This is an excellent overview of Soviet foreign policy during the Cold War. Judicious and fair, and drawing on much new information from the archives, one gets a sense that this will be the definitive work for some time. The only criticism I have is that I wish the author had dealt with the Sino-Soviet split in more depth. It is here, but only episodically brought in to the narrative. But all and all a great book and a fine read.

Farley's Follies (as the author renames this collection in his foreword) is an enchanting encounter with our Northern Neighbors. After the introduction of the sailing librarian father, and his floating boat-mobile, I was thoroughly locked into the magical land of travel via armchair. Clever illustrations could have (should have?) included a map as these stories take the reader all over Canada: Ontario, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland and the tundra of Hudson Bay. Depression refugees, trading the re-invented fishing boat for the prairie ark/schooner, pet owls, a magic mutt, naturalist training, an artic expedition, sailing adventures, amazingly tolerant and encouraging parents, and letters home from WW2, the reader watches the man emerge in this an exceptional compilation.-Mamalinda

Like most Americans, I had never heard of Farley Mowat until I made the association of the Disney film "Never Cry Wolf" with his name on a book spine one day. I loved the movie, so I figured I might as well try out the book.

I adored Never Cry Wolf, but you often hear that a writer has one good book in him (or her), and after that it is all downhill. Furthermore, I looked in the library catalog and Mowat had dozens of titles! I had no idea which ones to try, they had odd titles! So I picked up this reader, to get an idea which of the titles I might want to pick out.

After reading this collection, I decided I wanted to read them all. Mowat is simply the best Canadian writer, and one of the top of this century, in my humble opinion. I have now read five of his books, and my collection continues to grow. Even the books that are represented as children's books (like The Dog Who Wouldn't Be) are a joy to adults as well.

Mowat has the keen eye of observation that Mark Twain had, but without the viciousness of the satire... he is much more coy and subtle in his musings on families and nature. Many of his works involve the Arctic north, Saskatchewan, the high seas, and animals; but I have yet to find a poorly written chapter in any of his works.

If you want some proof that Mowat is worth buying, pick up this Reader and see for yourself. I read a few small portions to my writers club as samples of excellent writing, and they loved it. It reads smoothly, like a storyteller would speak, like a Garrison Keilor tale.

He is a controversial figure, is my understanding. Purportedly, he is not allowed to visit the United States, because in one book he claimed to shoot his rifle at overflying US warplanes. Who knows if this is true; Mowat admits to a bit of freedom in embellishing a tale; which is only right, since it is more fun that way. Don't worry about these details, just read some of it and enjoy it.

This is a fine introduction to popular Russian fairy tales, including the story of the little snow girl (a childless couple builds a daughter out of snow) and "Frost" (cruel stepmother sends girl out to freeze in the snow, but Frost sees her kindness and spares her-- the nasty stepsisters are not so lucky). The similarity between some of the Russian tales and our own English fairy tales is interesting (why is the stepmother always the evil one?). This introductory collection leaves one wanting to learn more Russian tales.

This is a fantastic collection of stories that have been a part of the Russian culture for centuries. Anyone growing up in Russia has heard these stories, and now so can you! Kids will appreciate the characters and adventures. Parents will appreciate the values and lessons. Everyone will appreciate the timeless tales of fantasy, magic, and talking animals.

The most amazing thing about this book is its entertainment value actually equals its historic value. These are bios of women who put their values and the lives of Russian peasants ahead of their own. It features the primary account of the world famous assassination of Governor Trepov from the pen of his assassin, Vera Zasulich. It also features Vera Figner's account of her unsuccessful (and finally successful) attempts to assassinate Tsar Alexander II. The sacrifices of these women include shedding aristocratic lifestyles for back breaking labor in noblemen's fields so they could teach peasants how to read and spread propaganda for their cause. Some of their comrades actually went insane in the process. You will read about their experiences as exiles in Siberia, and one of the greatest escapes Hollywood never saw. Whether you consider yourself a history buff, or just appreciate great stories, you will love this book.

This book sat unread on my shelves for a while, and now I can't believe it didn't actually leap off the shelf into my hands to MAKE me read it; it's so utterly fascinating and engrossing that I haven't been able to put it down. I was expecting some dry history and feminism; this is a fascinating first-person portrait (or rather, five first-person portraits) of political struggle, social norms, everyday life, and revolution from the writings of five very literate, engaging writer/revolutionaries.

I hardly know how to review a book like this (since I can't talk about plot or about structure of arguments, as it's first-person memoirs), but it's been among the most worthwhile 250 pages of my reading life.

As a history fan I am of course familiar with the tragic tale of the fall of the Romanovs and the killings of Nicholas and Alexandra and their children. And of course I was aware that the Romanovs were quite a sprawling family, with lots of Grand Dukes and Duchesses, but I did not know a great deal about these individuals, who are all equally fascinating in their own right - and often even more so, as Nicholas and Alexandra enjoyed a quiet life.

The book commences with the assasination of Alexander II and the ascent to the throne of his son Alexander III. From here we get to know of the young Nicki (later to be Tsar) and his other siblings, including Olga, who had a life of some hardship but did not complain until she died in her 80s. The book covers the revoltion of course, but for those readers wanting to know more about that and the impact on the immediate royal family, I recommend Robert Massie's excellent "Nicholas and Alexandra". What I found of more interest was how the extended royal family fared, some being executed the Bolsheviks, some enduring amazing hardship and escapes, and others being saved by sheer luck.

The final part of the book deals with the remaining Romanovs in exile, and examines the interaction with the competing family groups and individuals who laid claim to the now empty throne. These characters include Kyrill, who is the ancestor of George, the current claimant, and Dimitri, the ultimate playboy who had an affair with Coco Chanel and married an American heiress.

This book is a reminder of how revoltion and war can change the worlds of so many people, and how that change had spread and impacted through a Europe which was also in the throes of dramatic change. We must remember that the Romanovs were descended from or connected by marriage to most of the other royal houses in Europe, and there were many political and dynastic implications of the fall of the Romanovs. This is a fasinating story about fascinating people in a time when the world was turned upside down.

As a history fan I am of course familiar with the tragic tale of the fall of the Romanovs and the killings of Nicholas and Alexandra and their children. And of course I was aware that the Romanovs were quite a sprawling family, with lots of Grand Dukes and Duchesses, but I did not know a great deal about these individuals, who are all equally fascinating in their own right - and often even more so, as Nicholas and Alexandra enjoyed a quiet life.

The book commences with the assasination of Alexander II and the ascent to the throne of his son Alexander III. From here we get to know of the young Nicki (later to be Tsar) and his other siblings, including Olga, who had a life of some hardship but did not complain until she died in her 80s. The book covers the revoltion of course, but for those readers wanting to know more about that and the impact on the immediate royal family, I recommend Robert Massie's excellent "Nicholas and Alexandra". What I found of more interest was how the extended royal family fared, some being executed the Bolsheviks, some enduring amazing hardship and escapes, and others being saved by sheer luck.

The final part of the book deals with the remaining Romanovs in exile, and examines the interaction with the competing family groups and individuals who laid claim to the now empty throne. These characters include Kyrill, who is the ancestor of George, the current claimant, and Dimitri, the ultimate playboy who had an affair with Coco Chanel and married an American heiress.

This book is a reminder of how revoltion and war can change the worlds of so many people, and how that change had spread and impacted through a Europe which was also in the throes of dramatic change. We must remember that the Romanovs were descended from or connected by marriage to most of the other royal houses in Europe, and there were many political and dynastic implications of the fall of the Romanovs. This is a fascinating story about fascinating people in a time when the world was turned upside down.

I have read this book since I was 4 years old and it has been my favorite book ever since!!! I have enjoyed the wacky and colorful illustrations and the the unique style this book was written in. I also found this book to be extremely funny in the dialogues of each character. Everyone would enjoy the humor and the originality of this book, that is an instant treat to the young and old.

I remember when i was about 7 my mom brought me home this book , i flipped throught the pages and loved the zany, colorful illustrations, i read it over and over and listened to the tape every night when i went to bed until the tape wore out.even though i am older now, i am looking foreward to reading this book again and keeping it for when i may have kids of my own. I think that this is a great book for any little kid to have and listen to, or even big kids (me), the story takes you through a strange and hillarious world, that is acompanied by ammusing illustrations. it is a great book for kids to read and listen to that will be sure to make them laugh. Definitly not your everyday childrens story, but one that is sure to be a instant favorite.

As a history student I found this book a really good source to write my essay on the methods of terror used by the Bolsheviks. This book is designed to all of those that study the history of nationalities after October of 1917. I think this should be one of the first books of Pipes on the. subject of the Bolsheviks. It is really interesting that Pipes provides a lot of information in an era (1950's) when there was little information about the Soviet Union. I have also read from Pipes, The Russian Revolution, Russia under the Bolshevik Regime, The Unknown Lenin and Russia under the Old Regime.

In the exceedingly complex series of events that went into the making of the Russian Revolution and its subsequent devolution into the communist government of Felix and Vladimir, Pipes makes another foray into clarity and meaning, and succeeds wonderfully.

While this book might not interest the causal reader on Comunist Russia and her sattellites, it is as close to seamless reading as we will ever find for the ethnographer of violence in the Russian landscape.

And what the hell, it still might interest the causual reader- I guarantee you will go away with a complete picture of an important period of time.