A Taste of Russia: A Cookbook of Russian Hospitality

Darra Goldstein

Russian Information Services, Inc.

Russian and American journalists Mikhail Mordasov and Paul E. Richardson traveled 6,000 kilometers from Russia's northwestern corner in the Arctic to Sochi, in the tropical climes of the Black Sea. This bilingual coffee table book is the gorgeous photographic journal of that epic road trip. It includes over 200 compelling images of Russians and Russian places met along the way, plus a dozen texts (in both English and Russian) on everything from business to education, from roads to fools. A museum quality hardcover photo book, The Spine of Russia is a vivid portrait of modern Russian life, and includes over 40 environmental portraits of "heroes" interviewed in depth by the journalists, each of whom was asked the timely question: "Do you consider yourself a patriot, and if so, of what and why?" (Their fascinating answers were all over the map...) Organized in a unique, non-linear style, The Spine of Russia allows readers to construct their own trip across Russia. This is truly a volume you will treasure for years to come. The perfect gift for a Russophile!

The Spine of Russia

Travel

Paul E. Richardson

Asia

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Bochkareva, Maria

Levine, Isaac Don

Call it resilience, grit, or just perseverance - it takes a special sort of person to have survived the last 100 years of Russian and Soviet history. The 22 heroes in this volume were all born in 1917 - Russia's year of revolution - somewhere within the bounds of the Russian empire as it then existed. They lived through Civil War, Collectivization, World War II, the Cold War, and the collapse of the USSR. Indeed, their lives are a living reflection of the past Russian century, and their stories show us a side of history not available in any other resource. The authors of this project sought out these centenarians for months, then traveled over 20,000 kilometers across Russia and Eastern Europe, from sprawling metropolises to tiny villages, capturing poignant images, moving life stories, and stunning video. This book is the fruit of those efforts.

Resilience: Life Stories of Centenarians Born in t

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers understanding of Russian language and culture. The enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes 95 essays (originally published between 1995 and 2006) and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words. Each essay is written with the beginning to intermediate language learner in mind. All Russian words are accented and defined in context. All words and phrases used in the book are indexed. All essays are grouped by theme and indexed by subject. A thematic Study Guide helps students review and learn words subject-by-subject.

Survival Russian: A guide to the words, phrases, idioms and customs you need to survive, and thrive, in Russia

Ivanov, Mikhail

Test your knowledge of the Russian language, Russian history and society with these 22 challenging puzzles taken from the pages of Russian Life magazine. Most all the clues are in English, but you must fill in the answers in Russian. If you get stumped, of course all the puzzles have answers printed at the back of the book.

22 Russian Crosswords

One of the greatest Russian satires ever published and one of the last works of Russian fiction to poke fun at the Soviet regime before the imposition of unbridled state censorship in the 1930s. Anne O. Fisher's lively translation (the first since 1961) is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book's two co-authors. The Little Golden Calf is a true gem of Russian literature. This edition is the first unabridged, uncensored English translation, and is 100% true to the original serial publication. It resurrects the con man Ostap Bender, "the smooth operator," and follows him and his three hapless co-conspirators on a hilarious romp through the Soviet Russia and Central Asia of 1930. Bender claims that he has "very serious differences of opinion with Soviet power. It wants to build socialism, and I don't." He wants to emigrate to Rio de Janeiro, so he and his crew set off in pursuit of an underground millionaire, who, Bender is certain, "will bring me his money himself, on a little saucer with a sky-blue rim." The Little Golden Calf stands alongside the works of Griboyedov, Pushkin, and Gogol for its profound effect on Russian language and culture. The tale overflows with trenchant catchphrases and legendary literary episodes, offering a portrait of Russian life that is as funny and true today as it was when the novel was first published. For decades, foreigners trying to understand Russia have been advised to read the adventures of Ostap ("This book says more about Russia than a dozen tracts written by foreigners..." the New York Times wrote in 1932). This new translation makes them more enjoyable than ever.

The Little Golden Calf

Literature & Fiction

ILf, Ilya

Petrov, Evgeny

Humor & Satire

This mesmerizing novel about the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman was shortlisted for the prestigious Russian Booker Prize. Fish is an expansive, gripping, often controversial story of the intimate fallout of imperial collapse, from one of Russia's most important writers. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera ("Faith" in Russian) from the desert of Central Asia, to exile in Southern Russia, to a remote forest-bound community of Estonians, to the chaos of Moscow. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, Vera swims against the current of life, countering the adversity and pain she meets with compassion and hope. Suffering through rape, abuse, dislocation and exile, Vera personifies Mother Russia's torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration. Nicknamed "Fish" by her abusive husband, who feels she is cold and unfeeling, Vera in fact discovers she has a powerful gift to alleviate the suffering of others, while she can do little to fend off the adversity that buffets her own life. Aleshkovsky's work is remarkable for his commitment to the realistic novel tradition. Indeed, Fish is the first Russian novel to grapple with post-Soviet colonial otherness without transposing it into a fantastic, post-apocalyptic realm or reducing it to black-and-white conflicts of the popular detective genres. Stylistically, Aleshkovsky s prose most closely resembles the work of Vassily Aksyonov or Lyudmila Petrushevskaya, with its mastery of evocative detail and mystical undercurrents. The male author's choice of a first-person, female narrator (extremely rare in Russia) makes Fish all the more significant.

Fish: A History of One Migration

Peter Aleshkovsky

The Samovar Murders (The Matyushkin Case Files)

Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

Bayer, Alexei

Mystery

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