July 15, 2020 Unusual Russian Dishes and VR Films “This dish is eaten in almost every home. I don’t understand Russian people’s tastes at all.” - Chinese blogger on herring under a fur coat, one of six items he listed as unusual Russian dishes Film & TV Food & Drink Quote
July 08, 2020 Boars and Bad Weather “If you meet a boar, don’t approach it and don’t look it in the eye … if you meet a whole herd, stay away from the piglets.” - Advice in a note from the Moscow mayor's official website on the appearance of wild boars in some Moscow parks Animals News Quote
July 01, 2020 Getting Out and Shaping Up “Women most often think about new breasts and buttocks, some receive such operations as a gift from their gentlemen. For men, surgery to correct the shape of the nose and ears is now popular. We took a closer look at ourselves, sitting at home, and apparently decided to improve our aesthetic appearance.” - Plastic surgeon Dmitry Elenshleger on the popularity plastic surgery in Russia, now that the quarantine is being lifted Health News Quote
June 24, 2020 Eurovision Revisited “It's nice to receive such news from Europe!” - Ukrainian singer Ani Lorak on winning the revote for Eurovision 2008 Culture Music Quote
June 17, 2020 Watch Songs for Russia Day “This is a good deed, one of the great opportunities to pay attention to people who need special support and attention, and, if necessary, help, especially in the current difficult epidemiological situation.” – Advisor to the Governor of the Rostov region Anton Alekseyev on the online project “Smotri pesni” (“Watch Songs”) Holidays Music Quote
June 10, 2020 Snakes and Self-Isolation “It’s not clear how he found himself at school: maybe someone threw him out or he crawled away. As our specialist said, the python is full. Such an animal is able to swallow even a cat. And it’s a great happiness that no one was hurt.” – Alena Shibanova, a representative from the Good Home Animal Shelter, on a two-meter python found near a school in Kineshma Animals Health Quote
June 03, 2020 Misplaced Global Anxiety? “It’s all bullsh*t… It’s all exaggerated. It’s an acute respiratory disease with minimal mortality.” -Alexander Myasnikov, appointed in April as Russia’s head of coronavirus information Health News Quote
May 27, 2020 Poetic Graffiti, Self-Isolation, and Skyrocketing Views “On the day of his 80th birthday, Brodsky returned to Pestel Street—he is looking directly at his balcony in the house where he lived, those same one and a half rooms from where he left forever. But poets always return.” – Creators of a large graffiti display depicting the poet Joseph Brodsky Culture Health Pop Culture Quote
May 20, 2020 What Will Russians Want Next on TV? “I think that, first of all, viewers will want to watch something easy. Comedy, melodramas about love, and, of course, blockbusters, but they won’t start to be released right away, because the pandemic should not only end for us, but all over the world.” – Kirill Razlogov, president of the Guild of Film Critics and Film Critics of the Russian Federation Film & TV News Quote
May 13, 2020 Victory Day in Isolation This project is free, there is no monetization in it… I don’t know what will be ahead, but it doesn’t interest me now. ‘Stoyanov in isolation’ is a way of emotional and professional survival." – Russian actor Yuri Stoyanov, on his new YouTube show “Stoyanov in Isolation" Film & TV Holidays Quote
May 06, 2020 TikTok but from Home “I don’t know what to do here. What am I supposed to do, sing, dance? I don’t understand what people do on TikTok. ” – Opposition leader Alexei Navalny, in his first post to TikTok, where he gained 130,000 followers in less than a week Health Internet Quote
April 29, 2020 The Throat-Singing American “People here usually say to me: you are different than we thought and from the way American people are shown on TV. And I am happy.” – Sean Quirk, an American who has been living in Tuva, Siberia for almost 20 years, and knowns the Tuvan language better than Russian Culture Language Regions Quote
February 28, 2022 to December 31, 2024 Free Russian Language Guided Tours Metropolitan Museum of Art | New York, NY Russian-speaking guides conduct tours of the museum's highlights every Monday at 11 am. Art Exhibit
November 11, 2023 to September 15, 2024 Visions of Transcendence: Creating Space in East and West Wende Museum | Culver City, CA This exhibit highlights the resilience and creative power of people deprived of their freedom or their own place to live. Art Exhibit
Driving Down Russia's Spine The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia.
Steppe / Степь This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
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.
Resilience ~ The Russian Version (Переживем) 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.
The Little Humpbacked Horse A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
A Taste of Chekhov This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
The Samovar Murders The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
Russia Rules From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.
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.
The Latchkey Murders Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
August 22, 2020 Sad Smiles and Kremlin Corruption Recounting a 2008 meeting with activist Alexei Navalny, before he rose to prominence. Government Politics Russia File
February 20, 2014 Russian Genealogy A comprehensive listing of resources, online and off, for researching your Russian roots, courtesy of Ginny Audet. History Reference Russia File
May 31, 2020 Inside Brighton Beach's Babushka Beauty Pageant 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
March 15, 2017 Who Invented the Ancient Slavic Gods, and Why? How it was that in the eighteenth century Russian mythology was trumped-up in the Western manner? Who wanted it? And where did we get Lel, Yarilo and Zimtserla? We explain everything you'd want to know about Russian fakelore. Culture History Literature Religion Russia File
August 22, 2016 Magical Kefir Kefir is the most popular fermented milk in Russia. But it did not get there overnight. Kefir and Russia have a long history... Food & Drink History Russia File
October 31, 2016 Why Stalin's Corpse Was Exhumed on Halloween The body of Joseph Stalin was removed from the mausoleum on Red Square on October 31, 1961. It may not be as spooky as Halloween, but the former leader still haunts Russia today. History Politics Social Issues Russia File