The Russia Reader: History, Culture, Politics(The World Readers)

Letters recording the reactions of ordinary Russians to the Revolution as events unfolded in 1917, an account of the day-to-day scramble to make a living after the end of the Soviet Union, and excerpts from a sixteenth-century manual instructing elite Muscovites on proper household management-The Russia Reader brings these and many other selections together in this introduction to the history, culture, and politics of the world's largest country, from the earliest written accounts of the Russian people to today. Conveying the texture of everyday life alongside experiences of epic historical events, the book is filled with the voices of men and women, rulers and revolutionaries, peasants, soldiers, literary figures, emigres, journalists, and scholars. Most of the selections are by Russians, and thirty are translated into English for the first time. Illustrated with maps, paintings, photographs, posters, and cartoons, The Russia Reader incorporates song lyrics, jokes, anecdotes, and folktales, as well as poems, essays, and fiction by writers including Akhmatova, Dostoyevsky, Pushkin, and Tolstoi. Transcripts from the show trials of major Party figures and an account of how staff at the Lenin Library in Moscow were instructed to interact with foreigners are among the many selections based on personal memoirs and archival materials only recently made available to the public. From a tenth-century emissary's description of his encounters in Kyivan Rus', to a scientist's recollections of her life in a new research city built from scratch in Siberia during the 1950s, to a novelist's depiction of the decadence of the "New Russians" in the 2000s, The Russia Reader is an extraordinary introduction to a vast and varied country.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments xi General Introduction 1 I. Icons and Archetypes 13 II. From Kyiv through Moscovy 61 III. Reform to Revolution 97 IV. Far Pavilions: Siberia 151 V. A Changing Countryside 201 VI. Near Pavilions: The Caucasus 257 VII. Revolution 305 VIII. Building a New World from Old 351 IX. Rising Stalinism 401 X. The Great Terror 447 XI. The War Years 493 XII. the Thaw 537 XIII. Russians Abroad, Near and Far 573 XIV. Life under Advanced Socialism 615 XV. Things Fall Apart 667 XVI. Building a New World, Again 701 Acknowledgment of Copyrights and Sources 743 Suggestions for Further Reader 753 Index 765

About the Author :
Adele Barker is Professor of Russian and Slavic Studies at the University of Arizona. She is the editor of Consuming Russia: Popular Culture, Sex, and Society since Gorbachev, also published by Duke University Press; co-editor of The History of Women’s Writing in Russia; and author of Not Quite Paradise: An American Sojourn in Sri Lanka. Bruce Grant is Associate Professor of Anthropology at New York University. He is the author of The Captive and the Gift: Cultural Histories of Sovereignty in Russia and the Caucasus and In the Soviet House of Culture: A Century of Perestroikas.

Review :
"The Russia Reader provides a wonderful overview of Russian life and culture across the centuries, from the emergence of Muscovy and Russian Orthodoxy to the present day. The editors have done a remarkable job in selecting a range of texts that provide a sweeping overview of the complexity, drama, passion and tragedy of Russian life. The author's brief introductions helpfully situate the texts. Readers can either follow the fate of Russia chronologically--or they can use the book as a kaleidoscope, to explore different facets of Russian life and culture. Readers will find a treasure trove of beautiful, dramatic and tragic readings to explore Russian history and culture across the ages."--Peter Holquist, History Department, University of Pennsylvania "Adele Barker and Bruce Grant have selected a fascinating group of writings reflecting Russian reality, past and present, most by Russians themselves. The selections make absorbing reading and convey insights that penetrate the veil of mystery that has so long obscured the 'Russian soul.'"--Jack F. Matlock Jr., United States Ambassador to the Soviet Union, 1987-1991 "The book is tailored to occasional and avid readers alike, with its chapters organized along a roughly chronological thread...The vast majority of the texts are lucid and eye-opening, with Georgi Derlugian's unsparing but balanced "Chechnya -- A Brief Explanation" constituting one of the book's absolute highlights. ...For the reader who desires to take a first dip into Russian history and culture but is overwhelmed by the vast amount of work available, The Russia Reader is the ideal starting point." - Viktoria Ivanyutina, The Moscow Times "The Russia surveyed here is one that reveals the complex layers of history that have accumulated over time and the voices that Barker and Grant marshal in telling Russia's history are engaging and innovative ones... The Russia Reader should interest any ... traveler looking for a rich introduction into the history, culture, and politics of Russia." - Stephen M. Norris, Anthropology of East Europe Review "The Russia Reader is excellent. It is a tremendous introduction for the newcomer to Russian history and culture, and even the well-versed reader should find fascinating new material amongst the rich variety collected here." - Mary Bailes, Scotland-Russia Review