The Invention of Russia, Arkady Ostrovsky
The Invention of Russia, Arkady Ostrovsky
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The Invention of Russia
From Gorbachev's Freedom to Putin's War

Author: Arkady Ostrovsky

Narrator: Michael Page

Unabridged: 12 hr 50 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 06/28/2016


Synopsis

The end of communism and breakup of the Soviet Union was a time of euphoria around the world, but Russia today is violently anti-American and dangerously nationalistic. So how did we go from the promise of those days to the autocratic police state of Putin's new Russia?

The Invention of Russia reaches back to the darkest days of the cold war to tell the story of the fight for the soul of a nation. With the deep insight only possible of a native son, Arkady Ostrovsky introduces us to the propagandists, oligarchs, and fixers who have set Russia's course since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The Soviet Union yoked together dreamers and strongmen—those who believed in an egalitarian ideal and those who pushed for an even more powerful state. The new Russia is a cynical operation, where perpetual fear and war are fueled by a web of lies. Twenty-five years after the Soviet flag came down over the Kremlin, Russia and America are again heading toward a confrontation, but this course was far from inevitable. With this riveting account of how we got here—of the many mistakes and false promises—Ostrovsky emerges as Russia's most gifted chronicler.

About Arkady Ostrovsky

Arkady Ostrovsky is a Russian-born journalist who has spent fifteen years reporting from Moscow, first for the Financial Times and then as bureau chief for the Economist. He studied Russian theater history in Moscow and holds a PhD in English literature from Cambridge University. His translation of Tom Stoppard's trilogy The Coast of Utopia has been published and staged in Russia. Arkady is a regular guest on the BBC, Sky News, and NPR, where he comments on Russia and the former Soviet Union.


Reviews

Goodreads review by W.D.

Easily the most confident and stylishly-written book of the clutch of modern Russia tomes I've been trying to educate myself with. Beginning with the death of Stalin seems a bit weird at first given the subtitle, but since Putin has woven a Statist (specifically a neo-Stalinist/Imperial Russian/Myth......more