2 comments about Moscow and St. Petersburg (Fodor's Guides).

1. The book is very comprehensive, but to the type of tourist I am, 300 hundred pages of just descriptions is not good. For tourist that can only dedicate 4 to 5 days to each city, we would like to see lots of pictures of the most important places we should not miss in the city. The book doesn't have any pictures. it is also helpful to mention that the Peterhof palace needs to be (ideally) visited during late spring or summer. The gardens of the palace are absolutely fantastic, with the highlight of the springs of water flushing from every statue, step, and fountain. and the ponds and springs are closed at other time of the year. So you can not appreciate them in its full beauty and glory. We went to St. Petersburg in October and the fountains were closed in Peterhof, but the garden is worth visiting, even if they are not working in full. just remember to wrap up well!



2. This guide was OK however I there are much better ones out there. Not enough background-history & culture, no pics, just not close to being the best guide I've used. Rough Guide & Let's Go are much better. Eyewitness Guide is great for history & visual.

5 comments about A Russian Journal (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics).

1. This is a great road trip story . . . that just happens to be set in Russia (and elsewhere in the Soviet Union). It is an amusing and thoughtful account of Steinbeck's travels with his good friend Robert Capa. As Steinbeck often noted in his works of nonfiction, he recounts merely what he saw, which may or may not be reflective of the experiences of others. Thus this is far more a narrative about two men traveling together than it is a book about Russia. Steinbeck does not seek to unravel the mysteries of Russia; he merely wishes to take a peek behind the curtain to get a glimpse of how its inhabitants live.

   This is a very amusing, thoughtful and readable book - the best Steinbeck I've read.




2. I read this book after returning home from a two week trip in Southwestern Russia. Steinbeck and Capa took their journey in 1948. They travel from Moscow to Volgograd and Rostov before turning back in Georgia. Much of the tension in this book springs from the rapidly cooling relationship between leaders of Russia and the United States at that point in time.

   Their aim is not political. They seek to understand the hearts of the Soviet people. One of the amusing elements of this book is their regular conflict with the Soviet censors, who refuse to believe that they do not have political motives. Steinbeck intersperses the commentary on Russia with the nuts and bolts of their daily travels. The method mirrors the approach of his 1940 collaboration in the Gulf of California, "The Log from the Sea of Cortez." Steinbeck likes to write about the universal character of people and this trip to Russia or his previous trip in Mexico both speak to that interest. His conclusion is that Russians are like people anywhere else - they are proud of their homes and their families and are sincere in their efforts to build their nascent country. Steinbeck also goes to pains to elicit the hope among the Russian people for peace.

   Many of the things that catch their eye remain constant to now. One interesting change is the perspective of the Russian people about the direction of their country. In Steinbeck's recollection, the people recognize that they are sacrificing for the good of their country. In 1948, the Russians expect that they will eventually gain from their hard work. Now they seem to have less faith.

   This book is a great chance to learn about the personality of the world famous Robert Capa. During his travels with the Hungarian photojournalist, Steinbeck gets pretty pesky about Capa's personal habits. It seems that Capa likes long baths, other people's books, and morning silence. Steinbeck and Capa share rooms during their trip. I really enjoyed the secondary theme that develops on Capa's behavior.

   Everyone should read this book, not just people who want to know about Russia.




3. This is a great book. I am a frequent visitor to Russia and I enjoyed the oportunity to compare and contrast Russia today with postwar Russia under Stalin. Unfortunately, Robert Capa's photos in the 1999 paperback are small and muddy. I could not even recognize places that I have visited many times. This book was a collaborative effort, but the 1999 printing seriously short changes Capa's contribution.
   
   I don't know if the images are better in the 2001 paperback, but after reading the 1999 edition I got a copy of the 1948 hardback via Amazon. I recommend that you do the same if you want to fully enjoy this excellent work.



4. I'm a photographer and huge admirer of both Capa and Steinbeck, but I wasn't sure what to expect with this book. In fact, it's totally readable, wonderfully informal and very engaging -- something of a page turner. You get a vivid picture of the strength and dignity of the Russian people after the terrible destruction of the war, and also an entertaining sense of the relationship between Capa & Steinbeck and their Russian hosts. Their trip took place in 1948, just as the cold war began, and it offers unique insight into how the people of Russia see the USA -- namely as an important and admired friend.
   
   Unfortunately, the pictures, while fascinating, are not well served by the paperback printing. But given the paper quality and the small size of the book, they're about as good as they can be. I suspect that a hardcover would do the pictures more justice.



5. I think this book is wonderful and very very interesting.
   I like the style of Steinbeck and I have enjoyed all his books that I have read.
   This book shows the life in the Soviet Union (they visit Moscow, Ukraine and Georgia) shortly after the war, when people are trying to rebuild their lives after the war. I`d say that mainly they are pretty enthusiastic about that and believe in the better future to be achieved by the hard work...
   In the time of edgy relations between Soviet Union and USA, this book shows that the russians and the americans both are people just like others...

5 comments about Enchantment.

1. This is an awesome story. The characters are well developed, the story is captivating, the writing is (as is always true with OSC) superb!



2. This is simply a terrific book! A time traveling tale of adventure, magic, and romance, mixed in with the age old battle of good and evil, gives rise to a story that is totally engaging. A take off on the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale, the author has given it a very definite Russian twist with the injection of Baba Yaga as the wicked witch.
   
   Our erstwhile prince, an Ukranian born graduate student living in America, goes home to visit his relatives. He also seeks to find a magical place he remembers from when he was a young boy, where a young woman lay sleeping in the forest. When he finds it, he will enter a world that will be beyond his wildest imaginings.
   
   Well-written, highly imaginative, and peppered with memorable characters and sly humor, this is a book to remember. Bravo!



3. This is a modern/fantasy romance tale. It is not as popular as some of Card's other books, but it is still a great story. Card sets the story in modern day and in medieval Russia. The evil witch in this story is Baba Yaga! Fans of Russian folktales will enjoy this story, too.



4. My wife kids and I have a great time sitting down and listening to this story in the evening. A wonderful twist on an old fairly tale.



5. This book has got to be one of the best fantasy novels I've ever read - and I've read tons. It ranks up there with my favorite series from Guy Gavriel Kay, The Fionavar Tapestry - This book is just as good as they are, or better. Very captivating story, will definitely keep you turning the pages. Its a fresh take on a fantasy novel and so not what you would expect from Mr. Card. I reccommend it to everyone and they never regret reading it.

5 comments about Russian Spacecraft Pocket Space Guide (Pocket Space Guides).

1. This book is a great start to familiarize oneself with the Soviet/Russian space program, a program embedded in secrecy and with little information available in English. It's info-packed with drawings/illustrations and photographs. Again, one has to congratulate the author Robert Godwin, which has again shown the quality of his work.



2. Editor Robert Godwin has done a fantastic job in telling the story of Russian space technoligies. You would think that in this 50th year since sputnik was launched that such a book would be HUGE and cost a great deal- but Godwin has put it all together so well with photos and diagrams- many that even I haven't seen before, that people of all ages and interests will get alot out of this pocketbook.



3. I tried this one on a whim. There's a whole series of these books, and I chose this one because of my interest in the mysteries of the Soviet space program.
   
   The writing is...how shall I put it...bold? Perhaps the author is trying to make up for the small size of the book (and very small print) by making the ideas and claims really stand out memorably. It isn't quite going as far as a "Soviet Space Program for dummies" but it's close.
   
   Good pictures. I'm especially impressed with the focus on the N1 super-booster, which would have sent cosmonauts to the moon, if they could only get the doggone thing to fly. (It kept blowing up during unmanned tests.) The pictures of N1 show it to be a huge, Saturn V-sized cone with a huge number of small engines at the base (there are 30 nozzles for stage 1 alone!).
   
   If this inexpensive book is indicative of the entire series, I'll be picking up some more.



4. This is a useful little book. It is a good potted history of Soviet and Russian space endeavour. It is very easy to read which makes it an ideal starter for anyone new to the history of spaceflight. It gives some good insights into the byzantine world of Russian space exploration without becoming dense. The photographs are are amazing and include some very rare and informative images. My one gripe is that the technical drawings and cutaways are really too small to gain anything other than a general idea. Nonetheless as a reference, it is a good book to have.



5. It's interesting but the presentation is blah. It goes on like an interminable lecture and there are few worthwhile graphics, just some small black & white photos and no clear drawings or cutaways. If you know nothing about Russian space this will tell you something but I suspect there are much better titles available.

No comments about Hammond International Norway/ Sweden (International Series).

4 comments about Soyuz: A Universal Spacecraft (Springer Praxis Books / Space Exploration).

1. The Soviet/Russian space program has already operated 4 space stations ( Salyut-series, Mir, ISS ). This book by BIS president Rex D. Hall focuzes on the story of the Soyuz spacecraft which has been used to bring both visitors and resident crews to the Space Stations. An integral element of Salyut , Mir and Internatioanl Space Station ISS operations, the small ferry has been the mainstay of cosmonaut transportation since 1967. In addition, since 1978 the unmanned freighter version called Progress has provided a means in which to regularly re-supply a space station and so prolong its orbital lifetime.
   Using authentic Soviet and Russian sources this book is the first known work in the west dedicated to revealing the full story of the Soyuz series. The book describes Mission Hardware and Support Docking Missions from 1966 - 70 , the 1971-81 Soyuz Manned Ferry, the 1978 onwards Progress Cargo-Resupply Ferry , the 1979 - 86 Soyuz T manned ferry, the updated Soyuz TM, 1986 - 2002 to Mir and the very latest Soyuz TMA which has become the vehicle to bring crews to ISS since the accident of shuttle Columbia.
   An excellent reference work (it includes a complete listing of vehicle production numbers ), the only minus I see is that this book is not available in Hardcover ...
   Philip CORNEILLE



2. This book adds a lot of insight into how the Soviet and now Russian Space programs developed and refined Soyuz. It will leave you with a solid knowledge of what a workhorse it is - not as sexy as the Shuttle - more like a crew cab pickup truck that just gets better and better with every version release. The majority of the book has great relevant technical detail with some good yarn spinning to add flavor. The functional relationship between Soyuz and Salyut, MIR and ISS is nicely detailed in this book.

   With that said, it's a shame the authors released it with out more editing. There is one section that clearly was published in draft form with the notations left in for further clarification or to add more information at a later date. It is actually kind of amusing that the authors where using a shorthand at one point that was meant to be searched and replaced - and they didn't - thus they share there cute nickname for the Russians.

   The authors should be applauded for the hard work they put into researching and assembling this book. The publisher should be spanked for not finding them a couple of hungry graduate engineering assistants to help turn this into something more readable




3. This book provides an overview of the Soyuz hardware and Soyuz flights up through the Soyuz TMA, with in-depth coverage of many early flights. It also includes a substantial chapter on the Progress. There are numerous black and white illustrations and photographs.
   
   Note that book does not focus on operations on-board the Salyut, Almaz, Mir or ISS stations, only on getting there/back and docking.



4. I would say that this book, along with the authors' Rocket Men and David Harland's Mir are the three most important books on the Soviet Space program and it's equipment. For almost 40 years the Soyuz has been the workhorse of the Soviet/Russian space program, this book chronicles the first 36 years. Both the human side and hardware are covered.

3 comments about Russia: Beyond Utopia.

1. What a delightful collection of photos from modern Russia. What particularly lured me into buying this book was first, a fascination for Russia, for life in its newly changed government, and because this book shows two sides of the country, both the decadent imperialist past and the new, modern Russia. What stikes me most in these photos is the incongruency in the every day elements of life, the mix of building materials that were no doubt selected for their functional rather than selected for any artistic merit, and how it all blends together to create a certain 'look' to the country.
   
   Some photos that caught my eye include a derailed line of boxcars shot at the port of Okha, a side-car motorcycle posing in front of a boxy two-story apartment building near the sea of Okhotsk, and a well manicured dining area at the Ukrania Sanitorium, color coordinated in white, light blue and red, illuminated both by natural light and a lit chandelier. Most of the photos are populated with people, some showing both the residents and their environs, and other photos focusing more on the land and structures of the country itself.
   
   The range of the 120 plates leaves me with such a visually mixed reaction to the country, from its vastness, to its natural beauty, with a touch of gloom.
   
   I am very pleased that I bought this book.



2. I was disappointed when I looked through this book. I am not sure what I was expecting. I might have kept the book if I had understood more of the pictures. I have been to Russia 3 times and I guess I saw more things that I would have included in this book. Russia is far from a utopia and to not picture the every day tourist scenes is perfectly fine, but I guess I would have wanted more explanations. The picture quality however was very good.



3. This is one of the rare books that gave me pure pleasure. Andrew Moore's pictures of Russia are not to be just looked at but contemplated. Returning to them one discovers each time something more about their beauty and the story they tell. Andrew Moore makes us see things our eyes would never have seen if we had visited those same places. The editor is also to be congratulated for the great quality of the book.

5 comments about Off the Map: Bicycling Across Siberia.

1. Seems like the author is trying to pretend to be this geat hero riding his iron stallion across the frozen reaches of Siberia.

   I found him to be a true bore. Out running and out smarting Soviet KGB agents on a bicycle? Oh please!

   If you want to read a true adventure, read Miles From Nowhere by the late Barbara Savage.




2. Mark Jenkins clearly did not like Russia and the system. I agree on his view of the old system, but my thoughts were again and again: What does he do there. He don't like it at all. In spite of all the trouble of Mark Jenkins, the fact is that a Russian biker crossed Russia one sea to another in 1967, 22 years before Jenkins. The first do cross all of Russia was a Dane, me, who did it in 1997 from Magadan to Kaleningrad (more to the East and more to the West than Jenkins route). The brother of Fjordor Koinikov (who followed Jenkins), Nikolai, tried to do it before me. He failed because of cold. I succeed because I loved Siberia. Jenkins hated it.



3. Jenkins does an excellent job of conveying the feelings he experienced during this trip. Sometimes spirits were low and sometimes they were high. His writing captures the reality of the trip and reveals the spirit of the Russian people with great emotion. I disagree with the review above that states Jenkins hated Siberia. He clearly had a great appreciation for the people he met there and valued his experience. It was obvious that he had a problem with Communism, and hence did not understand the Soviets. This is a book about people. Who cares whether they were the first group to ride across the country? The objective of the book was to describe a journey, and that has been done very well.



4. This is an excellent book. It offers a brief peek into the vast Russian hinterland that plodded along under the Soviet shroud. Russia is not Moscow. It's written sometime in the late 80's, not long before the USSR collapsed, and shows us people who's main priority is survival, not Communism. Jenkins writes in a rambling style that paints a vivid picture. Having gone to Russia since reading it for the first time, I can say the picture is very accurate.



5. The title says it all. This book is filled with intriguing stories filled with symbolism and philosophy. Also a great book to read if you like biking or want to learn some history about Russia and the Soviet Union.

5 comments about River of No Reprieve: Descending Siberia's Waterway of Exile, Death, and Destiny.

1. Burdened with a brutal history of Cossack conquest, labor camps, gulags, displaced people and rapacious resource plundering, and all but abandoned by the state that exploited it, Siberia is the perfect choice for a certain sort of travel writer to go and reflect on the state of the world.
   
   Jeffrey Tayler ("Siberian Dawn," "Angry Wind"), a linguist who speaks Russian, Arabic, French, Greek and several other languages, writes about remote and difficult places - the Sahara, the Congo, Siberia. His previous trip to Siberia was in winter, when he traveled on the frozen Lena River by truck.
   
   This time he goes in summer by inflatable raft down the same river, retracing some 2,400 miles of Cossack exploration, from Lake Baikal to Tiksi on the Arctic Ocean, 450 miles above the Arctic Circle. Tiksi is the sort of place where the deluxe hotel suite does not come with hot water in the "warm" months, the months of "rain and snow, not just snow."
   
   The trip grew out of a desire to clear his head of city clamor and explore the lives of real Russians - the impoverished rural masses. Having lived in Russia for 11 years, made a life and married, Tayler, an American, finds himself despairing of the place. The collapse of communism seems only to have opened the doors to corruption and chaos. "I was seized by a desire to find out what had gone wrong? Had I really devoted my life to a doomed land?"
   
   His guide is the misanthropic Vadim, a Muscovite and Afghan War veteran who drives a truck and spends every summer in the North. He would prefer his beloved Siberia without people and his disdain for Tayler's insistence on stopping at each down-at-heels village to talk with the inhabitants only grows with time. His enthusiasm for the land is vocal and passionate and Tayler's restraint baffles him. Their personalities chafe, but Tayler grows to appreciate his expertise - from his boat handling skills to his precision in setting up the daily camp.
   
   The trip itself is as grim as it is adventurous. The indigenous Yakuts and Evenks, forced by the Soviets to abandon nomadic lives for villages, factories and government subsidies, now find themselves abandoned, the old ways forgotten. The Russians include descendants of prisoners - criminals, dissidents and intellectuals - as well as exiled Baptists and Germans. Others came for the high pay and benefits offered by the Soviet government to harvest the land's rich resources. And now the factories are closed and the benefits long gone.
   
   People, even descendants of those banished by Stalin, yearn for the security and order of a strong central authority. Tayler despairs at their nostalgia for Soviet rule and their support for Putin's strong-arm tactics. Alcohol is a ubiquitous plague.
   
   Even the weather seems to signal collapse. As the raft heads north storm follows storm, lashing the travelers with frigid rain and gale-force winds, when the season calls for balmy temperatures and alpine tundra blooms. Climate change, the inhabitants comment, has deprived them of summer.
   
   Tayler writes with an eye for detail and a certain reserve. Though open to everyone he meets, he is also wary and not easily bamboozled. While Vadim exults over the view at every bend in the river, Tayler's enthusiasm is tempered by the (literally) choking clouds of bugs and a certain impatience with Vadim's insular chauvinism. This is a thoughtful, sympathetic, often melancholy portrait of an extreme place with an extreme history and an uncertain future.
   
   -- Portsmouth Herald



2. Author Jeffrey Taylor used a custom-built boat to travel over two thousand miles to the Arctic Circle, recreating a journey first made by Cossacks over three hundred year ago, seeking a respite from the modern world. RIVER OF NO RETURN: DESCENDING SIBERIA'S WATERWAY OF EXILE, DEATH, AND DESTINY charts his journey, providing true life travel adventure at its best as Taylor comes to realize his guide is a bitter Soviet army veteran who hates all humanity - including Taylor. A vivid adventure comes to life in a compelling 'you are there' story.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



3. Most of us who have visited or lived in Russia since 1990 have spent out time in the major cities or around them. Jeffrey Tayler takes us to places in Russia that we will probably never have an opportunity to see. He does more than look and see. He experiences. If you are familiar with Russia or parts of it, the story makes sense and we can relate. Certainly what he experiences is far more extreme than what most of us know. And yet, it is still familiar. From his travel companion's contempt for all people who aren't "real" Russians, to the wish for and fear of contact with nonRussians that others exhibit, this is a story of Russian people. I learned, I was depressed, I laughed, and this book made me want to go back to Russia and experience it again and again.
   Walter Brooke



4. Very interesting. The author does an excellent job weaving in historical backgroung. He describes a very harsh environment inhabited mostly by drunks. Moves along quickly for a 2500 mile boat ride.



5. Tayler wanders off a bit in trying to make his language too flowery and poetic, but I guess it comes from living in Russia maybe where poetry is still respected. That or he is just trying to add a little more flavor to this rather depressing tale. There was one reviewer who gave this book only 2 stars because there was not more pictures and he thought the cover photo didn't look like the guy on the back flap. All I can say is try a trip like this yourself and see what you look like in two months. If you need more pictures, stick to the children's section. Having live in Russia for 4 years now I found it very believable. Vadim the guide is exactly as I could imagine having know a few Russians much like him.
   What bothered me the most is that Tayler never mentions contacting his wife even once on the whole trip. I'm sure he must have, but didn't think it worth mentioning. All-in-all, a good adventure, and a good read.

No comments about Russia/CIS Map (Country Road & Touring).