Generic Editorial Images

Birch Trees
Birch Trees
By Ursula Drake
St. Petersburg
St. Petersburg
By Romain Aurelian
Railway Cargo Terminal
Railway Cargo Terminal
By Vladimir Grigorev
Samovar Museum, Gorodets
Samovar Museum, Gorodets
By Vladimir Petrov
Rural Scene
Rural Scene
By Kusmina Svetlana
Russian Rubles
Russian Rubles
By Alexandr Blinov
Moscow Metro Sign
Moscow Metro Sign
By Dmytro Tolmachov
Apartment Buildings
Apartment Buildings
By Natalya Letunova
Kamchatka
Kamchatka
By Alex Glebov
Russian Rubles
Russian Rubles
By Alexandr Blinov
Village Rabocheostrovsk, Republic of Karelia
Village Rabocheostrovsk, Republic of Karelia
By Kotomiti_okuma
Moscow Metro
Moscow Metro
By Mikhail Leonov
Interior of Izba, with Samovar
Interior of Izba, with Samovar
By Artzzz
High Speed Sapsan Train
High Speed Sapsan Train
By Igor Rogkow
Harvesting
Harvesting
By Olgakorica
Russian Train in Leningrad Region
Russian Train in Leningrad Region
By Alenka2194_info
Abandoned Village
Abandoned Village
By Max5128
Moscow Metro - Komsomolskaya Station
Moscow Metro - Komsomolskaya Station
By Martin Leber
Solovki Monastery<br>
Solovki Monastery
By Natalia Sidorova
Samovar
Samovar
By Roman Belogorodov

 

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A Few of Our Books

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
The Samovar Murders

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.
Bears in the Caviar

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.
Okudzhava Bilingual

Okudzhava Bilingual

Poems, songs and autobiographical sketches by Bulat Okudzhava, the king of the Russian bards. 
The Little Golden Calf

The Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

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

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.

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Using Laughter to Cope
September 07, 2021

Using Laughter to Cope

These eight outstanding Soviet comedies show ​​some of what has made Russians laugh over the past century. Most are still watched today. (First in our new series on learning about Russia through its films.)

Why Don't Russians Smile?
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.

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