Synopses & Reviews
With the power of
Lenin's Tomb and
Balkan Ghosts, an illuminating portrait of contemporary Russia.
A decade after the Soviet collapse, Russia remains a country in limbo, a land of vast potential struggling with an unfinished past. Journeying to Russia's five corners Moscow, Chechnya, Norilsk, Sakhalin, and St. Petersburg Andrew Meier, a former Moscow correspondent for Time magazine, presents a history of contemporary Russia, a deep map of lands where few foreigners have ventured. In Moscow and St. Petersburg, Meier explores Russia's unbridled market and often lethal politics. From Chechnya, where he investigates the worst single-day massacre of civilians, to Norilsk, the world's northernmost city, Meier, a bold new voice in political journalism, uncovers a common theme: the need to find meaning amid the Soviet ruins, to unearth-often literally-the past in order to preserve it, escape it, or bury it for good. In the tradition of Rebecca West's Black Lamb and Grey Falcon, Black Earth is a penetrating, riveting view of the new Russia that has emerged in recent years. Seven b/w photographs.
Review
"Readers could not easily find a livelier or more insightful guide." Adam Hochschild, author of King Leopold's Ghost
Review
"[Written] with insight, passion, and genuine affection for the people of a wonderful and troubled land." Michael Specter
Review
A poignant and powerful portrait of a shattered nation. (Time, 27 October 2003)
Synopsis
Includes bibliographical references (p. [481]-495) and index.
Synopsis
With the power of "Lenin's Tomb" and "Balkan Ghosts, " this is an illuminating portrait of contemporary Russia--a country in limbo, a land of vast potential struggling with an unfinished past. "Black Earth" is a penetrating view of the new Russia from a bold new voice in political journalism. 7 maps.
About the Author
Andrew Meier is currently a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, DC. His writing has appeared in Harper's, the New Republic, the New York Times, and the Washington Post. He is a Time magazine correspondent, and he was stationed in Moscow.