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A recent letter that the editors of Russian Life received from one of its respected readers was directed at Mikhail Ivanov and one of his “Survival Russian” columns. We felt it deserved a longer response than space in the magazine allowed.

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

The world's largest and most active space port is situated in the middle of the Kazakh desert. Largely off-limits to outsiders, it is an unusual mix of hi-tech and low-key. And it was from here, just over 50 years ago, that humankind first reached out to touch the stars.

All the news that fits from all across Russia.

Readers comment and correct.

Is Russia embroiled in “a rampage of obscurantism with significant limits on civil freedoms” that has a close parallel with McCarthyism?

Russian place spirits - including the domovoy, bannik, fleshy, rusalka and others - have a history that stretches back to Rus' pagan past. And despite the crush and frenzy of modern life, these spirits impact Russians to this day.

The latest from the travel front.

Not far from the middle of Moscow, there is a diminutive church with a distinctive legend at the heart of its history. We went for a visit.

Vadim Meshcheryakov was halfway through a successful career as a banker when he gave it all up to publish children's books. But not just any children's books.

A review of two new works of fiction, Matthew Dunn's Sentinel and Ilya Boyashov's The Way of Muri. Both offer entertaining reading, for entirely different reasons.

The distinctive form of the Russian drinking vessel known as the kovsh dates back thousands of years. We consider its form and function, and offer a related recipe for Cranberry Kvass.