The legendary Russian pianist, friend of Pasternak and other greats, who fell from grace to live precariously on the fringes of Soviet society. EW is the author of fine biographies of Shosta... read more
How Putin and his entourage of KGB men seized power in Russia, controlling the economy through a fiefdom of oligarchs, and have used that wealth to extend their own influence.
This hardba... read more
Lucy Atkinson (1817-1893) was an English Atkinson was an English nanny working in Russia. In 1848 she set out with her new husband on a six-year exploration of Siberia and Central Asia, by f... read more
An elliptical wander through the vast steppe of Russian literature: Lermontov's only novel is comprised of three narratives that frame the Byronic and flawed protagonist Pechorin, in whom al... read more
LH is an award-winning investigative journalist who spent several years in Moscow before being expelled in 2011. In his latest book he covers the work of Russian spies in recent years, inclu... read more
We heard about Molotov's library in Rachel Polonsky's superb Molotov's Magic Lantern (£12.99). Now we have a portrait of Stalin through the books he read - and he was an avid reader all his... read more