February 12, 2021 Call the Cossack Cybersquad Russia's solution to social media profanity? Cossacks, of course! History Internet Social Issues Russia File
February 03, 2021 Freed Internet or Internment? “Everything is ready for it technologically. All decisions have also been made at the legislative level, but (…) it is not easy, and it is really not desired. I still, frankly speaking, do not see any signs of this happening, because, for obvious reasons, it is a double-edged weapon.” – Brandishing the biggest sword, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev announced to the rest of the world on February 1st that Russia is now ready to disconnect from the global Internet. Government Internet Social Issues Quote
January 27, 2021 No Beating Around the Bush “These promotions are illegal. <...> Of course, we must talk about the illegality of the actions, not about detentions. I don't see any violation at all. What is it, are these our first arrests? These are not the first uncoordinated rallies. Usually this ends with someone drawing up a complaint of administrative offense and then they are released. I am sure that now, if there are no provocations or clashes with the police, the same will happen.” – The refreshing honesty of Valeriy Fadeyev, the Head of the Human Rights Council under the President of Russia, calling it like it is in the midst of massive anti-corruption protests rocking Russia. Government Moscow Politics Social Issues Quote
January 22, 2021 A Model Problem-Solver A man in Ufa got help for paying off his debts thanks to a classy photo-shoot. Cities & Towns Social Issues Urban Life Russia File
January 07, 2021 Russia's Still Odd in 2021 This week, stealing a ridiculous amount of butter leads to punishment; Chechen nepotism knows no bounds; and Russians hope for an end of the pandemic (don't we all?). Cities & Towns Government Law Moscow Social Issues Urban Life Odder News
January 06, 2021 Party Like It's Belarus The president of Russia's neighbor Belarus ended 2020 the same way he started it: in denial over the coronavirus pandemic. Government Health Politics Social Issues Russia File
December 31, 2020 Taxis, Guns, and Scams This week, we mark the end of 2020 with transportation stats, social media monitoring, and preparations for wild celebrations. Holidays Internet Law Military Moscow Social Issues Transportation Odder News
December 24, 2020 Drugs, Pirates, and Apple Pay This week, your mother turns out to be right all along; Aeroflot adapts to COVID; and the European Commission says you can get good, free movies from Russian social media. Cities & Towns Economy Internet Law Social Issues Odder News
December 23, 2020 A Blog for Babushka A recent survey of the elderly finds that one-fifth of pensioners hope to supplement their income with a blog. Economy Internet Social Issues Russia File
December 17, 2020 Putin, Forest Work, and Gender Changes This week, politicians are caught red-handed; surrogate motherhood and gambling are (apparently) the same; and Putin isn't as hip with the youth as you'd think. Government History Military Politics Social Issues Women Odder News
December 15, 2020 Tsargrad the Litmus Tester The “Orthodox oligarch” is starting a political organization to promote politicians who share his views. Politics Religion Social Issues Russia File
December 11, 2020 Yes, Dumplings are Still Bribes A police chief in Novosibirsk has been convicted of corruption charges after accepting Caucasian dumplings as brides. Food & Drink Government Law Social Issues Russia File
February 22, 2022 to February 22, 2032 Russian-Language Gallery Tour Brooklyn Museum | Brooklyn, NY Russian-language tour exploring our collection in depth, second Sunday of each month at 1 pm. Free, reservations required Art Exhibit
February 28, 2022 to February 23, 2032 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
September 22, 2023 to January 21, 2024 Spirituality in Eastern Christianity Museum of Russian Icons | Clinton, MA An exhibition of photographs by Alain de Lotbinière. The 26 images were taken during the course of several trips to Northern Macedonia, Serbia, and Russia, as well as during visits to sites in Turkey and Egypt. Art Exhibit
December 10, 2023 to December 10, 2023 HANUKKAH - FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS Plummer Park - Fiesta Hall | West Hollywood, CA Kol Sephardic Choir (ROSE) & Pasión Flamenca De Los Angeles cordially invite you to a wonderful musical event, "HANUKKAH-Festival of Lights" Music
September 13, 2023 to February 04, 2024 Komar and Melamid in America Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers University | New Brunswick, NJ The joint work of the well-known Moscow-born American artists Vitaly Komar and Alexander Melamid, who worked together from 1972 to 2003. Art Exhibit
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.
22 Russian Crosswords Test your knowledge of the Russian language, Russian history and society with these 22 challenging puzzles taken from the pages of Russian Life magazine. Most all the clues are in English, but you must fill in the answers in Russian. If you get stumped, of course all the puzzles have answers printed at the back of the book.
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.
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.
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.
Murder at the Dacha Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
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.
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.
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.
A Taste of Russia The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
Murder and the Muse KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.
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.
January 10, 2014 Why Don't Russians Smile? It is a common trope that Russians never smile. Which of course is interpreted to mean they are unfriendly, gloomy, sullen – positively Dostoyevskian. This, of course, is a complete misreading of body language and cultural norms. Culture Humor Language 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
May 07, 2015 The Most Useful Russian Inventions What do radio, television, the periodic table, and helicopters have in common? Russians were involved in developing all of them – and more! Reference Science Russia File
April 23, 2014 Peace, Land, Bread Peace! Land! Bread! This was the battle cry of the 1917 October Revolution (old calendar) that changed the history of Russia and indeed the entire world. Since the time of Ivan the Terrible, the tsars concentrated on centralization of their power and control. The most common way of doing this was to take power away from the nobility, appeasing them by giving them dominion over their land and workers. This soon developed into the oppressive, slave-style condition known as serfdom. History 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
March 07, 2022 Russian Life Takes a Pause As the world reels from the horrific, criminal events being perpetrated in Ukraine by Vladimir Putin, the Russian state, and the Russian military, all of us who nurture a love for Russian people, their culture and history, have been heartbroken. It is not easy to remain a Russophile when suddenly, all across the globe, the adjective “Russian” has become toxic. News Russia File
