August 02, 2021

The Purrfect PPE


The Purrfect PPE
Nothing says fierce competitor like a cute kitty-cat.  Photo via Evgeny Rylov / Instagram

Russian swimmer Evgeny Rylov entered the Olympic pool in Tokyo for the final 100-meter backstroke looking a little bit catty. Instead of wearing a stylized facemask to match his team uniforms, like many athletes from other countries seem to be doing, Rylov decided to take the path of self-expression and wear an adorable kitty facemask to the Olympic event. 

Like many Russians, Rylov is a huge cat-lover. He even has three pet cats back home in Russia, which you can see featured in many inexplicably shirtless selfies on his Instagram page. Supposedly, his girlfriend gifted him the kitty mask, and Rylov desperately wanted to wear it to the Olympics, to display his love for cats to the whole world. 

The sad news is that, while he was allowed to wear the mask out to the pool, he was forbidden to actually wear it during the presentation of the award when he won gold, which, in his own words, made him want to cry. So sure, a cat has yet to take home Olympic gold, but we are sure Rylov's cats are still very proud of his athletic achievements. Maybe they can fly there to be with him for the next Olympics, that is if they meet the weight requirements

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Some of our Books

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
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Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

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.

Jews in Service to the Tsar
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Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

Life Stories
September 01, 2009

Life Stories

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.

Little Golden Calf
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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.

A Taste of Russia
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A Taste of Russia

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