July 01, 2014 Spies, Denouncers and Gods By Paul E. Richardson Three books make our cut this issue, and all are about spies and infiltrators.
May 01, 2014 Putin, Lenin and Idioms By Paul E. Richardson and Nora Seligman Favorov A review of two timely books on Russian political and expat culture, and an update to a most important language book.
March 01, 2014 Spies and Memoirs By Paul E. Richardson Reviews of two nonfiction works about spies (some in Russia, one in America), and two memoirs of Russians from very different eras.
January 01, 2014 Empire and Paranoia By Paul E. Richardson This issue's review section considers Ben Judah's "Fragile Empire," Victor Martinovich's "Paranoia," C.P. Lesley's "The Golden Lynx," and Olga Fedina's "What Every Russian Knows (And You Don't)."
November 01, 2013 Baba Yagas, Kremlin and Cooks By Paul E. Richardson A review of two books on Baba Yaga, one on the Kremlin, and one on Soviet cuisine and memoir. Also brief reviews of two movies and three other books on everything from Lee Harvey Oswald to emigres in Paris.
July 01, 2013 Russian Mysteries By Paul E. Richardson Where we review "Murder at the Dacha," by Alexei Bayer, "The Twelfth Department," by William Ryan and "The House of Special Purpose," by John Boyne. Also reviewed in short are a few works of both fiction and nonfiction.
May 01, 2013 Black Russians and Dark Years By Paul E. Richardson A review of "Twilight of the Romanovs," by Blom and Buckley, "Lina and Serge," by Simon Morrison, "The Black Russian," by Vladimir Alexandrov, and "Moscow 1937," by Karl Schlogel.
March 01, 2013 Decline and Stalin By Paul E. Richardson Book reviews of "The Last Man in Russia," by Oliver Bullough; "Stalin's Barber," by Paul Levitt; "St. Petersburg City Pack," by Oxygen Books; "Happy Moscow," by Andrei Platonov (Robert Chandler, trans.); and "The Lying Year," by Andrei Gelasimov (Marian Schwartz, trans.).
January 01, 2013 Three Histories and Some Magic Tales By Paul E. Richardson Reviews of three works of history and one collection of fiction.
November 01, 2012 Spies and Cats By Paul E. Richardson 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.
November 01, 2012 The Museum of Abandoned Secrets By Paul E. Richardson Where we interview Nina Shevchuk-Murray, translator of this new book by Oksana Zabuzhko, which is an expansive piece of historical fiction that encompasses much of Ukrainian history, particularly during WWII. Interview
September 01, 2012 Films, Noir, Churches and Aristocrats By Paul E. Richardson Reviews of "Former People" by Douglas Smith, "Nevsky" by Ben McCool and Mario Guevara, "St. Petersburg Noir," edited by Julia Goumen and Natalia Smirnova, "Wooden Churches," by Richard Davies and Matilda Moreton, and "Russian Film Posters," by Vivays Publishing.
November 12, 2021 to December 12, 2021 Stage Russia presents Dmitry Krymov's "Boris" in HD Nationwide | Multiple Cities, A special in cinema presentation of Dmitry Krymov's award-winning production featuring Mikhail Filippov, Viktoriya Isakova, Maria Smolnikova and 2021 Golden Mask Award Winner, Timofey Tribuntsev. Film
November 04, 2021 to January 07, 2022 Yuri Gorbachev at The Byrne Gallery The Byrne Gallery | Middleburg, VA An exhibition of the vivid oil and enamel paintings of internationally-acclaimed artist Yuri Gorbachev Art Exhibit
October 15, 2021 to April 03, 2022 Icons for Our Time: Orthodox Art from Around the World Museum of Russian Icons | Clinton, MA Fifteen contemporary icons from fifteen countries explore iconography today. Presented in celebration of the museum's 15th Anniversary. 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.
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.
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.
The Spine of Russia This coffee table book is the photographic journal of an epic 6000-kilometer road trip. The book includes over 200 compelling images of Russians and Russian places met along the way, plus a dozen texts (in both English and Russian) on everything from business to education, from roads to fools.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
November 04, 2021 to January 07, 2022 Yuri Gorbachev at The Byrne Gallery The Byrne Gallery | Middleburg, VA An exhibition of the vivid oil and enamel paintings of internationally-acclaimed artist Yuri Gorbachev Art Exhibit
April 06, 2020 A Russian Gift By Mark C. Medish A look at how the Jesuits, Pope Francis, and Georgetown University all share an interesting connection to Russia. History Int'l Relations Religion
August 22, 2016 Magical Kefir By Philip Seifi 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
February 03, 2018 12 Myths/Truths About Russians and Vodka By The Editors Think you know your vodka? Take this True/False quiz (just 12 items) about Russians and their vodka and see if you are right about that... Food & Drink
March 15, 2017 Who Invented the Ancient Slavic Gods, and Why? By Kasya Denisevich 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
October 31, 2016 Why Stalin's Corpse Was Exhumed on Halloween By Alice E.M. Underwood 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
