An excellent contemporary account of the Russian Revolution by a respected historian who does an excellent job of integrating new sources and old, and letting us see the effects on the common folk of Russia of both the two revolutions and the ensuing three year civil war. A must read for anyone interested in this period and these events.

Zayde Mendel wants to do his share of kindness and cook porridge for hungry people during the great war. The problem is (as Bubbe Hinda pints out) he's never cooked anything in his life! But Zayde keeps asking, "how hard could it be?". Bubbe Hinda is kind to the sick. Zayde Mendel is kind to the hungry -- and both of them are kind to each other. Perfect Porridge is a delightful and highly recommended picturebook story for young readers ages 4 to 8 by Rochel Sandman that is based on true events and charmingly illustrated by Chana Zakashansky-Zverev.

If you like small town radio, or just small towns in general, you will enjoy this book. You will recognize a lot of the characters from your own small town. Bob Doll has a love for small towns and small town broadcasting that comes through in his thoughtful story telling. (Be sure to look for his other book "Sparks out of the Plowed Ground: The History of America's Small Town Radio Stations" which has more great story telling as well as being a history resource.)

Catherine the Great did much in her life to make Russia into a modern power. Educated, one of Russia's most competent rulers, and successful, she has had the bad luck to become a heroine of romantic fiction who is remember more for her sex life than for what she actually did and did not do. This book by Isabel de Madariaga shows us why Catherine was call "the great" and it wasn't because her life and loves. This was the great era of Russian expansion, cultural development (Catherine's offspring would get the benefit of the seeds she planted in the 18th century) and greater westernization. In all areas except one, the persistent problem of serfdom, which dominates the Imperial period of Russian history, Catherine advanced. I doubt very much if this will alter the image of Catherine that has been crafted in 1,000s of works of popular fiction, but readers wanting to know the whole story should take a look at this book.

While WWII studies have seen a lot of ink devoted to most of Wehrmacht top brass, the same cannot be said for the Soviet war leadership. Reasons have been mixed: lack of material, blind faith on the surmise (popular until mid-70's) that the only Soviet great commander had been Zhukov, and most of the rest had been (at best) a bunch of reliable robots, Cold War cultural policies. So this (a book born out of the sudden flow of material of post-Soviet era) is another "one-of-a-kind", as far as I know is the only collection of monographs dedicated to the wartime Soviet Generals, at least if you don't want to go back to such venerable stuff as Erickson's "The Soviet High Command", that anyway didn't deal with the personal details of each commander. I bought it with some trepidation, but I shouldn't have worried: "Stalin's General" is historiography at his best.

The array of contributor is impressive - John Erickson, Geoffrey Jukes, David Glantz, Richard Woff, Victor Anfilov and many others: what could you ask for more? Each contribution (the list is strictly alphabetical) deals with one name, usually mixing biographical data with some interesting assessment on the relative ability (or inability) of the subject. Some of the portraits are extraordinarily vivid - for instance, Konev as the competitive bastard, Rokossovsky as the compassionate, self restrained but gifted commander, Shaposhnikov as the old-school General Staff officer getting surprisingly well along with Stalin, Antonov and Vasilevsky as the brainy war managers (a la Nimitz), Vatutin and Rybalko as the impetuous field commanders, Golikov as the enigmatic "political" general, Boldin as epitome of mediocrity, Budenny as the man hopelessly out of sync with its times, Batov as the talented, professional Army officer who could have received much more recognition, had he fought with a Western power. And the list could continue - the book collect 26 monographs, plus a final article on the Soviet general fallen during (or immediately after) the war

The articles on Vlasov and Tuchachevksy stands out of the whole pack. The first in negative: Catherine Andreyev portrait of the ex-Soviet General who defected to the Germans has more to do with the then (1993) current Russian political situation than with serious research. On the reverse, Shimon Naveh's story on Tuchachevksy - deep operation lead theorist's, executed by Stalin in 1937 for an alleged "anti Soviet" plot - is simply terrific.

And now comes my only real gripe - where's Chernyakovsky? Red Army youngest "front" commander, and possibly the most talented Red Army field general, killed in action in East Prussia in 1945 after a meteoric and much deserved rise - I just can't believe it that Harold Shukman, book's editor, has just forgotten to include him. I mean, why Moskalenko (a rather undistinguished general) yes and Chernyakovsky no? It's true that you can't have everything in life...

While this is dated (1939?) it is a very good look at the last months and days of the Romanov dynasty. Pares was in Russia at the time, so he also brings the focus of an observer on the scene to the book. As a British historian writing between the wars,
and without access to most Russian archives, he does an excellent job of showing the reader these events and personalities from his close observer perspective.

Pictures From Balkonur

Author: William B. Trescott

Review by Tom Ness

I was pretty sure I was not going to care much for PICTURES FROM BALKONUR. My brother-in-law (author William Trescott) and I have very different political opinions, and from the cover art I expected a typical glorification of militaristic ideals. Instead, I was gripped from page one as the book precisely described the horrors and suffering endured by US Air Force pilots and crew engaged in the early testing of nuclear weapons. PICTURES FROM BALONUR tells the tale of a reconnaissance mission over the USSR which goes terribly wrong and brings the world to the brink of nuclear annihilation. The book is thoroughly researched and utterly convincing from a historical point of view. But even more interesting was the philosophical debate about the nature and paradox of threat-versus-security presented through the characters' dialogue. In the end, I learned a lesson: that conservatives hate war as much as liberals like myself. PICTURES FROM BALKONUR is a fascinating look at the early days of the Cold War, and will be enjoyed by everyone who looks to history for lessons about how nations might learn to peacefully coexist. TN

-- William B. Trescott ...

This is THE book to have on the Russian Avant-Gard and the Constructivism movement. It covers all phases of the movement from prior to the October revolution to Post-Stalinism and rediscovery. It addresses all the varied schools of thought and the various architects that collectively made up the Constructivism and Suprematism Movements. This book has THE single BEST COLLECTION OF PHOTOS AND PLANS OF ANY BOOK of this subject. If you can find this book BUY IT. Do not hesitate especially if your a student and this subject interests you. This should be a must for all Art and Architecture students.

THIS BOOK WAS GIVEN TO ME AS A GIFT A VERY LONG TIME AGO, BACK IN 1975. THE POETRY WAS WONDERFUL AND BEING IN LOVE WITH A VERY SPECIAL PERSON AT THE TIME AND SHARING "THE POEMS OF DR. ZHIVAGO" WITH HIM......MADE ME BELIEVE THIS BOOK WAS MADE FOR "LOVERS"!