November 11, 2021

Spider-Man, Siberian Tigers, and Sputnik V


Spider-Man, Siberian Tigers, and Sputnik V
In Odder News

In this week's Odder News, Russia eats too many burgers and fries, leaders get COVID-vaccinated six times, and a Chechen boxer has a magic touch.

  • Spider-Man is on the loose in Moscow – specifically, in the metro system. Though typical in cities like New York, buskers hanging from subway poles and flinging their legs inches from unsuspecting riders' faces is not normal in Moscow, although, apparently, increasingly common.
  • Fast food narod? This week, Komsomolskaya pravda bemoaned the fact that the pandemic has made Russia a country that consumes massive amounts of fast food. The "big three" are McDonald's, KFC, and Burger King. (Sadly, Russian KFCs do not sell bowls of mashed potatoes and gravy. What a waste!) There is no denying that fast food – especially when it is delivered right to your house – has helped some people get through the pandemic. Meanwhile, the pandemic hit traditional "sit down" restaurants hard, with a 52% collapse in the industry's profits in the first half of 2020. The number of purely takeaway joints has risen two and a half fold. The KP journalist writes with regret: "We're turning into a fast food country."
  • "Give him an Oscar!": At a boxing tournament in Grozny, Chechen boxer Abdul-Kerim Edilov defeated his opponent practically just by touching him. Boxer from Ghana Richard Larty lost "artistically and improbably." Edilov barely hit Larty, who fell to the mat and surrendered, leading to calls online to "Give [Larty] an Oscar!" for his acting performance.
  • An Amur (Siberian) tiger is on the loose near a village in the Khabarovsk region. Family dogs are especially under threat as Amur tigers have an "inexplicable craving for dogs." A tiger will watch a dog and its owner for hours and then strike as soon as the owner is no longer near the dog. Keep your dogs hidden and with you at all times, and call 112 (the Russian 911) if you see an orange blur.
  • The head of Russia's Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug got six Sputnik V vaccinations against COVID-19 as part of an "experiment." She got vaccinated back in March 2021 and yet, somehow, was pretty sick with COVID in October 2021. Apparently quantity does not change the likelihood of getting infected. LDPR leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky also reported getting six jabs since vaccines became available in Russia.

You Might Also Like

Russia's Restaurant Boom
  • May 01, 2018

Russia's Restaurant Boom

A vibrant cuisine is testing the limits, fusing with other national cuisines. How is this happening in Russia?
A Big Win for Big Cats
  • September 06, 2021

A Big Win for Big Cats

Big cats can rest easy knowing that both the Amur Tiger and the Amur Leopard have been declared safe from the possibility of extinction. 
Sinfully Good Burgers
  • August 13, 2021

Sinfully Good Burgers

A Russian woman is suing McDonald's for producing advertising so effective she gave up on Lent.
Printing Nuggets
  • July 24, 2020

Printing Nuggets

A Russian company is partnering with KFC to produce a new type of nugget.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

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.
Driving Down Russia's Spine

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 
Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
Murder and the Muse

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

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.
The Moscow Eccentric

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.
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

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.  
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.
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. 

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