Letters to the Editor

To the Editors:

I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy your magazine. I read each issue cover to cover. Ever since my trip to Moscow and St. Petersburg, in 1998, learning about Russian culture has been one of my hobbies. Even though my [Photo Contest] entry did not make it to the winning list, it was a chance to share my trip with others. So I was wondering if you had any plans to print some of the other 400 entries you received. Maybe a few pages a month? I know I would like to see more, and I think your other readers would also.

Thanks,

Ed Malmrose

Winsted, CT

Dear Ed:

Unfortunately, or fortunately, there is never enough space to print all the stories and photos we would like. We are considering some different ideas along these lines, specifically some type of desk calendar featuring reader photos. Should that come to pass, any readers whose photos were “short-listed” may hear from us.

— The Editors

To the Editors:

As a World War II veteran who was in the first division to link up with the Russian Army on April 25, 1945, I became a subscriber to Russian Life after browsing in a public library back in 1991. The articles give me insights about Russia that you don’t get on TV or in weekly news magazines.

For readers such as myself, it would be easier to put things in perspective if we had a map of Russia showing the states and their boundaries, with maybe an article about each one covering several issues: the political structure of the government, from the local level on up through to the President and hte Duma. Who makes the decisions about schools and roads, for example, and where does the money come from?

Sincerely,

Forrest G. Frentress

Hayden, CO

To the Editors:

I was excited to discover your magazine, beginning with the Nov-Dec 2000 issue. Especially, the pictures from your photography contest were wonderful!

I have one small addition to make to your “Olympic Dreams” article, though, regarding the star gymnast Svetlana Khorkina. Although her fall from the below-regulation height horse did result in her losing the prestigious “all around” title (especially when she subsequently fell on her beloved uneven bars), she did redeem herself three days later by winning individual gold on the uneven bars in the apparatus final! Finally, her petulant expression turned into a smile! Although later she said she would never forget “what they did to me [earlier].”

Anyway, I just wanted to mention this. Thank you again for your great magazine.

Sincerely,

Nina M. Herrera

Somerville, MA

ERRATA

In our article on Alexander Blok (Sept/Oct 2000), we mistakenly identified the young woman in a picture from a amateur performance of Hamlet (p. 35). The woman was not Blok’s future wife Lyubov, but Lyubov’s stepsister, Gertrude. Also, the short biography of Blok on page 36 was compiled by our editorial staff, not by the article’s author, Avril Pyman. Our apologies.