<p>Documents the tragic story of the Kazakh nomads of central Asia under Stalin's regime, offering insight into the culture's Islamic and pagan heritage, the ancient traditions that established their nomadic way of life, and the author's family's struggle to relocate and survive after his father was fatally incarcerated within a prison camp. 15,000 first printing.</p>

Silent Steppe: The Memoir of a Kazakh Nomad Under Stalin

Biographies & Memoirs

Shayakhmetov, Mukhamet

Historical

Overlook/Rookery

<p>This is a first-hand account of the genocide of the Kazakh nomads in the 1920s and 30s. Nominally Muslim, the Kazakhs and their culture owed as much to shamanism and paganism as they did to Islam. Their ancient traditions and economy depended on the breeding and herding of stock across the vast steppes of central Asia, and their independent, nomadic way of life was anathema to the Soviets. Seven-year-old Shayakhmetov and his mother and sisters were left to fend for themselves after his father was branded a "kulak" (well-off peasant and thus class enemy), stripped of his possessions, and sent to a prison camp where he died. In the following years the family traveled thousands of miles across Kazakhstan by foot, surviving on the charity of relatives. Told with dignity and detachment, this central Asian Wild Swans awakens the reader to the scale of suffering of millions of Kazakhs, and also astonishes and inspires as a most singular survivor's tale.</p>

The Silent Steppe: The Story of a Kazakh Nomad Under Stalin

Stacey Intl

This book begins where 'The Silent Steppe' left off. It is early 1945, and the author, Mukhamet, still recuperating from serious war injuries, has traveled thousands of kilometers back to his home village in the eastern Kazakh steppe. As he encounters scenes of desperate poverty, he quickly realizes the immense sacrifices made by local people, particularly women, while the able-bodied men were away fighting. Mukhamet endeavors to pick up the pieces of his prewar life, working hard to support his extended family, marrying, continuing his education, and eventually embarking on a life in teaching dedicated to giving young people the best education possible. Through his insightful portraits of local party bosses, district officials and bureaucrats, and tales of the vicissitudes of daily life, a broader, more personal picture emerges of life under Stalin and of his pervading shadow decades on. The author's moral integrity, stoicism and profound respect for the struggles of the common people stand out in this memoir of a life of self-effacing dedication.

A Kazakh Teacher's Story: Surviving the Silent Steppe

Stacey International

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Books by Shayakhmetov, Mukhamet

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Shayakhmetov, Mukhamet. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Silent Steppe: The Memoir of a Kazakh Nomad Under Stalin

The Silent Steppe: The Story of a Kazakh Nomad Under Stalin

A Kazakh Teacher's Story: Surviving the Silent Steppe