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Russia

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diamondlil
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Post by diamondlil » Thu September 11th, 2008, 8:22 am

The Bronze Horseman trilogy by Paullina Simons.
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Alex Worthy
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Post by Alex Worthy » Thu September 25th, 2008, 8:16 pm

[quote=""Juniper""]The Red Scarf by Kate Furnivall is one of the best novels I have read in a long time. It's set in Stalinist Russia and is very accurate in it's portrayal of Collectivisation and The Terror. I studyed Stalinist Russia in college, and really wish that this book had been available for me to read at the time. It brought it to life.[/quote]

Thanks, Juniper. I was looking for some fiction in the Stalinist era. Any other suggestions? Are there any novels where he is a main character? I'm not really big on biographies, but I'm interested (and appalled) by him.

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diamondlil
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Post by diamondlil » Thu September 25th, 2008, 8:53 pm

He is not the main character, but he is a major player in the final book in the Winston Churchill novels by Michael Dobbs - Churchill's Triumph.
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lama
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Post by lama » Fri September 26th, 2008, 7:20 pm

I don't really know of any from that era.

You could read the work of his contemporaries maybe--like Zoshchenko.

How about Akunin, a contemporary Russian writer of historical thrillers. Enormously popular in Russia from what I hear.

http://www.lebutler.net

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Volgadon
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Post by Volgadon » Fri September 26th, 2008, 7:53 pm

Bulgakov wrote a play called Batum, about the young Stalin and his role in the Batum strike of 1902. Stalin thought it was an excellent portrayal, but banned it because it didn't fit the myth he was creating, of the wise leader. In the piece he is shown as young and human. There was a lot that Bulgakov couldn't put it, but if you read carefully, the real Stalin is quite clear.

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Divia
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Way in the future...

Post by Divia » Mon September 29th, 2008, 12:36 am

Found this on a Alexander Palace forum. They are hardcore fans on there so I'm guessing this novel will be very realistic. It should hit publication in 2011 (but maybe in 10 )

Daughters of the Tsar - A Novel by Sarah Miller

OTMA is a novel, told from the four grand duchesses' point of view, and covering the years between 1914 and 1918.
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Alaric
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Post by Alaric » Mon September 29th, 2008, 4:38 am

I hope we start seeing more novels set in other periods in Russian history soon. Just about every new novel set in Russia is set during the revolution.

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Divia
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Post by Divia » Mon September 29th, 2008, 11:09 am

Agreed. The Russian novels we are starting to see reminds me of the HF with the Tudors. Its overshadowing everything else. And lets be frank here...Russia has a very rich history of very interesting rulers.
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Volgadon
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Post by Volgadon » Tue September 30th, 2008, 10:22 am

Actually, I really wouldn't mind seeing more HF about the revolution, but enough with the Romanovs' last days already!

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Ludmilla
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Post by Ludmilla » Tue September 30th, 2008, 3:07 pm

An unusual one about the waning days of the Revolution is The People's Act of Love by James Meek. I think it made the Man-Booker Prize Long List for 2005.

One of the summaries describes the novel this way:
Set in Siberia in 1919, this is the story of a small Christian sect and a stranded regiment of Czech soldiers. Into this isolated community trudges Samarin, a gulag escapee, whose arrival throws them into turmoil.
Worth checking out if you like philosophical novels that ponder uncomfortable questions about human nature (and fanaticism).

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