February 24, 2022

Bass Guitar, Baby Goats, and a Break for Guys


Bass Guitar, Baby Goats, and a Break for Guys
In Odder News

In this week's Odder News: planting forests as a present, a light thief, and a head-banger's fantasy.

  • One lucky go-getter's dreams came true at an Aria concert in the Moscow Oblast. The heavy metal band noticed his sign in the crowd which read, "I want to play Rose Street [one of Aria's songs] on the bass!" To the boy's shock, he was invited onto the stage to do just that! If you haven't heard of Aria, perhaps you need a refresher on Russian rock.
  • February 23 is Defender of the Fatherland Day, a holiday in Russia on which people celebrate the men in their lives. However, according to a new survey, nearly half of all Russians questioned consider the holiday to be only for military personnel. This doesn't stop the majority of Russians from taking the day off work, however.
  • On the other hand, if you're one of the people that do celebrate the gendered holiday, you will need a gift to give to the men in your life. Luckily, project Plant a Forest has you covered. They are running a promotion called "Trees Instead of Socks," whereby you can pay to have a tree planted in areas affected by fires and natural disasters around Russia.
  • Some people will steal whatever isn't bolted down, but even that doesn't stop everybody. One ambitious thief was caught on film carrying an entire light post home in the Moscow Oblast. Although it remains a mystery how or why the man would steal such a heavy object, we can only hope that he puts it to good use.
  • Don't worry, we didn't forget to add a bit about animals! Several baby goats have been saved from a garbage can in Chelyabinsk Oblast by children that heard their squeaks and called for help. But who would put such cute and useful animals there in the first place? A mystery, much like our light-pole-stealing friend.

You Might Also Like

Buy a Goat
  • May 01, 2020

Buy a Goat

It mows and fertilizes. What could possibly go wrong?
Gender Equality in Gift Giving
  • February 24, 2021

Gender Equality in Gift Giving

Russian women seem to luck out more than their male partners during the spring holiday season, a new study shows. 
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

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.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

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.
Murder at the Dacha

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.
Russian Rules

Russian 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.
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 
The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
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.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955