When first published in 1977 in Britain under the title of "Russia's Political Hospitals",Vladimir Bukovsky, a former dissident hospitalised during the Brezhnev era, said it would become 'a kind of encyclopaedia, an indispensable source for all those interested in the problem of psychiatric abuse'. That it has become. Copiously documented and dispassionately written, it is the definitive work on the misapplication of psychiatry for political ends. The Soviet regime may have collapsed but the methods it describes could be and probably in certain quarters still are practiced by totalitarian and authoritarian regimes. Any one interested in Human Rights and Medical Ethics should read this book.

Bitov, as one of the original members associated with the Metropol group (imagine a Bloomsbury in the former Soviet Union whose members faced very real consequences for expressing their views), a literary and arts association whose works literally transcended the unthinkable oppression, survives as do Aksyonov and Ratushinskaya. Pushkin House, which takes place in Petersburg, is as Nabokovian yet expressive as they come. The book assumes the guise of a sort of collage, expertly pieced together with incident and memory, the effect being something like studying the dizzing yet always stable and infinite array of refractions emerging from a well-cut gem when held up to the light. For anyone interested in or seriously studying Russian history or literature, Pushkin House, along with Solzhenitsyn, Aksyonov or Brodsky is essential; The book to end all nomenklaturas. A joy to recommend as much as to read

A well researched and insightful look at homosexuality in Mother Russia. I especially liked the photos of the author in male drag. A brilliant start to a fine career in writing. I hope to see more from this author.

In The Quest For A Democratic World, Mauric Rotstein undertakes a critical and comprehensive analytical survey of the political system in the West while raising questions concerning some of the literature in the social sciences. Rotstein reveals stereotypes that have become so fixed that they stubbornly survive despite flagrant and obvious contradictions to fact and reality. The Quest For A Democratic World is highly recommended, informative, thought provoking reading and an ideal addition to any political science, international studies, or comparative government studies reading list or academic reference collection.

Fascinating man!Great book! Must-read if you you're a)interested in history of space exploration b)speak Russian. Highly recomended

From the banal title of this book you might think you're in for a collection of stories about endless collective bargaining and the monotonous details of how to win a longer lunch break. Don't let the less than thrilling title keep you from this important book. What is actually contained between the covers are remarkable life histories and a rich tapestry of American experiences. The profiles in this book are as diverse as the working class itself. The characters are women and men, African-American and Eastern European. Some were born in urban ghettos, others raised on remote wind-swept farms. Some had absent parents or apolitical guardians already defeated by life with only racial and religious bigotry to pass on as a belief system. Others had parents whose views would be considered progressive today and then must have seemed dangerously radical. Some set out to be organizers but most had no intention of doing anything more than finding steady work. At some point however, each found themselves thrust head first into the class struggle and grabbed a hold of history. It is fortunate these stories have not been lost. Add this to your library.

An eccentric American professor of economics, Norton Dodge, travels throughout the Soviet Union during the 1960s and '70s and into the '80s. He spends several million dollars on dissident art, smuggling it out of the country, in deep violation of Soviet law but not the US's. John McPhee reports on the story, after the fact, and includes vivid descriptions of the artists and their relationships with one another, Dodge and the Soviet state. The Soviet state, of course, is the hulking force behind the story, responsible for making the artists dissidents and causing various among them, from time to time, to disappear or die. So McPhee asks Dodge how he managed to assemble the collection. Was Dodge a representative of the KGB? the CIA? McPhee defers to Dodge's explanations, but McPhee's recounting of his conversation with Dodge about CIA involvement in the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies may engender in the imagination of some readers a hint of the suspicion and paranoia that suffused the culture that originally created the art. About Norton Dodge and his collection (now housed at Rutgers University), the poet Konstantin Kuzminsky says, "Norton thinks art is international. I insist it's purely national." "Americans are afraid of everything which causes too much emotion and tragedy. That is the problem between East and West." Which suggests the gulfs in passion and experience separating this story of Russian art from the trig completeness suggested by McPhee's prose.

Hey what do i know? i'm only a high school kid. But this book helped me tremendously on understanding Fyodor Dostoevsky.

REAL IMAGES is a very interesting look at Soviet Cinema from 1953 to 1967. I can't think of another book that deals with the films of this era so completely. It is the book to turn to when one has finished Peter Kenez's history of Soviet Cinema to 1953.

What makes the book so interesting is that the author has investigated the background to each film, such as the controversy that projects such as "Carnival Night," "Nine Days of One Year" and "Ilich's Gate/I Am Twenty" generated before and during filming. These critical responses are tied to the political shifts of the Khrushchev era.

If there are any drawbacks, it is that the book opens slow, but then the interesting films didn't really start appearing until 1956. Also, the Shakespeare films of Soviet directors aren't really covered, but I can understand why the author made that choice.

Still, the positive features far outweigh any criticism. The book gives new perspective on directors such as Mikhail Romm, and shows the start of the careers of directors such as Eldar Riazonov and Elim Klimov. It adds flesh and spirit to the overviews of "Thaw" era Soviet cinema that appeared in The Most Important Art and other books.

Strongly recommended to anyone with an interest in Soviet cinema in general or European film of the Fifties and Sixties.