August 02, 2021 Leaving the Mark of Marriage at the Altar By Haley Bader A move to allow Russians to choose whether their marriage status will be included in their passports has met with traditional backlash. What was that about a ball and chain, now? Culture Customs Government Law Russia File
June 06, 2021 My First Ivan Kupala By Alexandra Curtis Ivan Kupala is a traditional Slavic celebration of the summer solstice, with many pagan and deeply symbolic rituals. How are these ancient customs celebrated and recreated today in modern Russia? Customs Holidays Rural Life Russia File
April 20, 2021 Repeat Offenses: Mothers Grieve a Spectacular Repast By Haley Bader It was not the first time, and is likely not the last: a woman chose the wrong spot for her spectacular repast... Will they ever learn? Cities & Towns Customs Food & Drink War Women Russia File
March 01, 2021 On Creativity By Paul E. Richardson The thematic arc that unites our features in this issue is that of creativity in the face of neglect, persistence in the face of oppression, resilience in the face of difficulty. Art Culture Customs Social Issues
January 12, 2021 A Quiet Christmas for Putin By Griffin Edwards Instead of reveling in the bright lights of a Moscow Christmas celebration, Putin decided to take in the holiday at a small church in a small town. Culture Customs Holidays Religion Russia File
January 05, 2021 Frozen Ramen Challenge By Margaret Godwin-Jones Russians are taking advantage of sub-zero temperatures to participate in the frozen Ramen challenge. Customs News Russia File
January 01, 2021 A Time for Pirogi By Marina Pustilnik January – and the winter months in general – are a great time to master the hearty Russian recipes for all kinds of pirogi. Customs Food & Drink
December 28, 2020 Cussing Stats By Griffin Edwards New research uncovers Russians' attitudes towards swearing. Culture Customs Language Russia File
December 09, 2020 Don't Try This at Home By The Editors “If questions arise as to whether demons should be driven out of this or that person, first of all, you need to turn to the priests. Any [personal] initiative in this is completely unacceptable.” – Metropolitan Hilarion, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church’s Department of External Relations, in response to a video showing parents attempting an exorcism on their son Customs Religion Quote
November 20, 2020 Moscow's Merry Measures By Margaret Godwin-Jones As the New Year approaches, Moscow’s mayor has announced new restrictions on holiday events, while the government considers extending the New Year’s holidays. Customs Holidays Russia File
October 16, 2020 Baba Yaga: Russian Folktales' Classic Witch By Griffin Edwards Slavic folklore sports a spooky old crone that just might give you a costume idea this Halloween. Art Culture Customs
September 09, 2020 For the Love of Dill By Margaret Godwin-Jones Dill on pizza? Sure, why not! Customs Food & Drink Russia File
June 28, 2021 to August 08, 2021 Atomic Alert!: Confronting "The Bomb" in the New Atomic Age The Museum of Russian Icons | Clinton, MA The exhibition explores the U.S. government’s Cold War era efforts, in the 1950s, to educate Americans about what to do before an atomic attack, how to react to a sudden blinding flash, and what action to take in the aftermath of a catastrophic blast. Exhibit, Other
November 01, 2021 to November 30, 2021 Yuri Gorbachev's 18th Annual Exhibition at the Byrne Gallery in Middleburg, Virginia The Byrne Gallery | Middleburg, VA Susan Byrne and Bill Byrne are celebrating their Gallery's 26th anniversary this year in Middleburg with a celebration and exhibition of the vivid oil and enamel paintings of internationally-acclaimed artist Yuri Gorbachev. Art Exhibit
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.
Woe From Wit (bilingual) One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
The Moscow Eccentric Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
Moscow and Muscovites Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin.
Red Star Tales: A Century of Russian and Soviet Science Fiction For over 100 years, most of the science fiction produced by the world’s largest country has been beyond the reach of Western readers. This new collection changes that, bringing a large body of influential works into the English orbit.
Fish: A History of One Migration This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.
Bears in the Caviar Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
Marooned in Moscow This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
Resilience: Life Stories of Centenarians Born in the Year of Revolution Call it resilience, grit, or just perseverance – it takes a special sort of person to have survived the last 100 years of Russian and Soviet history.
Fearful Majesty This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
May 07, 2015 The Most Useful Russian Inventions By Eugenia Sokolskaya What do radio, television, the periodic table, and helicopters have in common? Russians were involved in developing all of them – and more! Reference Science
February 20, 2014 Russian Genealogy By Ginny Audet A comprehensive listing of resources, online and off, for researching your Russian roots, courtesy of Ginny Audet. History Reference
July 01, 2013 The Russian Bees Will Save Us By Paul E. Richardson American bees are dying from mysterious causes, putting our agriculture at risk for lack of pollinators. Russian bees might be part of a solution. Agriculture Environment Science
May 31, 2020 Inside Brighton Beach's Babushka Beauty Pageant By The Editors A lovely short film on Brighton Beach's Your Highness Babushka Beauty Contest. Culture Pop Culture Russians Abroad Women Video of the Week Russia File
December 19, 2016 10 Things (And 5 Jokes) You Didn't Know About Brezhnev By Alice E.M. Underwood Soviet leader Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev would have been 110 on December 19. There are plenty of fun facts and surprising jokes behind the eyebrows. History Humor Politics
November 01, 2020 Tsarina: In the Winter Palace By Ellen Alpsten Catherine I finds herself at a turning point upon the death of her husband, Peter the Great. History Literature
