books about: russians

books about: russians

books:

Russians

Fyodor Dostoevsky

Vintage, 1993

An Astonishing Masterpiece
I've read this book three times and enjoyed it more each time. I believe you MUST read it more than once just to digest the myriad of subplots and the larger-than-life characters that permeate this novel. At the risk of sounding elitist, this book is not for everyone. ...

Anna Karenina (Oprah's Book Club)

Leo Tolstoy

Penguin Classics, 2004

Wonderful, vivid translation
This will be short, because it's been several years since I read it and I can't be as detailed as I might be about a book I just finished, but I LOVED this translation of 'Anna Karenina.' I had read the Constance Garnett translation in high school (40+ years ago!), and ...

War and Peace

Neeland Media LLC, 2004

My first thoughts after completion
I held the book in my hands and felt its weight. It looked quite big; not as big as when I first saw it but still big - and had I actually gone through all those pages and all those letters? Apparently. What now? What was this feeling spreading in me? was it ...

The Great Kettlebell Handbook

James Talo

Productive Fitness Pub, 2008

"Great" not an exaggeration (for once)
I've never worked out in my life. I've never belonged to a health or fitness club. I have trouble making myself do a few push-ups every morning (though I do like to hike and bicycle pretty strenuously). I thought the kettlebells sounded like fun and I was intrigued by ...

City of Thieves: A Novel

David Benioff

Plume, 2009

City of Thieves is simply a great novel
David Benioff has written a jewel of a story. His writing is endearing, his main characters we can relate to. The setting, Leningrad during World War II is awe inspiring and maybe in the hands of a lesser author, it could have managed to overshadow its characters; not ...

The Master and Margarita

Mikhail Bulgakov

Vintage, 1996

Wonderful book, but beware some translations
I read the Michael Glenny version in the late sixties, and have loved it deeply ever since. Having lent my copy to a friend I bought a new one some years ago - and I thought I would try the Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky version. This couple evidently know ...

Anna Karenina

Public Domain Books, 1998

A Classic Worth Reading
Although I read Anna Karenina when I was a young woman, this time around I saw more clearly the many levels of this story that I missed the first time. Tolstoy is a master. If you like getting a glimpse into the history of Russian life, especially the relationships ...

War and Peace (Vintage Classics)

Leo Tolstoy

Vintage, 2008

An Excellent Edition of War and Peace
I read the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation, and while I do not know Russian (or French very well), I can say that this translation is beautifully produced, readable, and convincing. This edition contains a useful introduction, list of main characters, notes, ...

The Brothers Karamazov

Fyodor Dostoevsky

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2002

A prophecy and a moving story.
The Brothers Karamazov is first, a coming of age story of Alyosha Karamazov from a naive novice in the monastery to a leader whose rousing sermon at the rock is the culmination of the story. Second, it is a complex allegory of the Russian nation and prophesy o ...

Anastasia (The Ringing Cedars, Book 1)

Vladimir Megre

Ringing Cedars Press, 2008

Enlighten Yourself!
I've only gotten 1/2 way through this book, and find it to be so full of intelligence! I'm going through it slowly (and I don't do much of anything, slowly) because there is so much to absorb. It's not only a pleasure to read, I know that it is a catalyst that is also ...

War And Peace (Signet Classics)

Leo Tolstoy

Signet Classics, 2007

Magnificent Achievement
"Well, Prince, so Genoa and Lucca are now just family estates of the Buonapartes. But I warn you, if you don't tell me that this means war, if you still try to defend the infamies and horrors perpetrated by that Antichrist--I really believe he is Antichrist--I ...

English-Russian, Russian-English Dictionary

Kenneth Katzner

Wiley, 1994

Simply Perfect; Only imperfection not a pocket size -- otherwise: THIS IS THE ONE
I'm usually a verbose reviewer. Here there is no need to be. The Russian teacher's review is accurate. But let's just be simple, here: this dictionary -- other than not being a pocket size -- is absolute perfection in every aspect of a dictionary in general and a ...

The Space of Love (The Ringing Cedars, Book 3)

Vladimir Megre

Ringing Cedars Press, 2005

Love is the Liberator (Says Mary Baker Eddy)
This third book deals with Megre's second visit to Anastasia within the Russian Taiga and also with his visit to some public Russian academies, which were built and erected solely by children and teen-agers who were motivated by the ideas of the first two books. ...

The Twilight Watch (Watch, Book 3)

Sergei Lukyanenko

Miramax, 2007

watch series defines its OWN genre
The movies made from the first two books also themselves carve out a new genre. Must see- and must read.

The New Penguin Russian Course: A Complete Course for Beginners (Penguin Handbooks)

Nicholas J. Brown

Penguin (Non-Classics), 1996

The best audio-free course
This is a great handbook and reference text. To complement this I just found a completely amazing new online course at [...] which has superbly organized audio files accompanied by text and all for only about $[...] US. If I had known about listen2russian I would ...