This book reveals the emergance of Sots Art (soviet pop), a popular underground movement during Perestoyka. Through their art these artists show the hypocracies and the false sense of reality brought on during the soviet era inRussia. Many of these works are currently on dispaly at the Weisman Art Gallery in Minneapolis, MN. This book should bre a definate purchase for pop art fanatics.

Chris LaTondresse

Very rarely does a work such as that of Irina Starr come across one's path. I had been reading a book which was a compelation of the spiritual episodes of several mystics when I was transported by the following passage: "The one thing which was, above all, significant was that everything was literally alive; the light was living, pulsating and in some way I could not quite grasp, intelligent. The true substance of all I could see was this living light, beautiful beyond words. This awareness of beauty so intense as to be nearly unbearable was not to leave me for the four days in which I beheld the world with extended sight". This qoute came from "The Sound of Light" by Irina Starr. Would you not want, more than anything, to read more of this wonderful mystic?!! I couldn't wait to receive the book and I devoured it and was raised to high places. Give your soul a treat and read this book.

Can't understand how this country works if you don't see how racism has been used, especially to divide workers. Honey writes about a pivotal time in American history when the working class was organizing and had the potential to transform the South for workers and African-Americans. The lessons are no less true today. A must read for organizers of any persuasion.

American, British, German, and Russian experts pool their respective knowledge to provide the first comprehensive, authoritative evaluation of Russian strength in the air at the time of printing. Every aspect of Russian thought and experience regarding the Soviet Air and Rocket Forces is examined in this book, ranging from the daily life and training of a Soviet airman to the political control of the Soviet Air Force; from the past history of Soviet air arms to a projection of their future.

Here George Schatunowski, himself a former Soviet officer, describes the development of the Soviet Air Force from the Russian Revolution to 1941. Hanson Baldwin, military editor New York Times, and General Walter Schwabedissen, a Luftwaffe commander who fought against Russia, discuss the Soviet air performance in WW2.
Other contributors include: Air Chief Marshal Sir Philip Joubert; Dr. Raymond L. Garthoff, J. M. Mackintosh, Richard E. Stockwell, Dr. Kenneth Whiting.
Photographs and comparative performance tables of Soviet bombers, fighters, transport aircraft, and missiles have been included.
...This text applies to the 1st edition published by Praeger in 1959.

K. Woody has done a masterful job of explaining the two banking systems of mature capitalism and changing socialism. She relates them to each other in a way that allows the reader to understand each in the context of the other. It is interesting and well written. The book is a must for those attempting to understand where mature and transforming economies juxtapose. Readers, including investors in Russia, need to read the book to understand the mindset of the transforming economies in their relating to their new "market" economies. Some transforming economies have done better than others. Some are becoming full market economies, some are hybrids and some may revert to old systems. This book is important for those who are dealing in any of the transforming economies because it will tell you what to look for in underlying operation principles and mentality.

Kort traces the complex history of Russia from the medieval era through the collapse of the Soviet Union in this fine one-volume account. The twists and turns of Communist politics and economic theory, so deadly dull in other hands, become not only clear but interesting here, a remarkable achievement in itself.
Highly recommended for the student and especially for the general reader who has foundered on other Russian histories in the past.
(The numerical rating above is a default setting within Amazon's format. This reviewer does not employ numerical ratings.)

This book gives an incredible overview of Soviet commercial design with tons of great color pages covering everything from package design, logos, posters, to general advertising. I would highly recommend it to design professionals and art students. The design inside has been ripped off a lot over the last few years, but it's still a great resource for timeless ideas and wonderful design.

The Soviet Control Structure: Capabilities for Wartime Survival, by Harriet Fast Scott and William F. Scott, is the first comprehensive analysis of the total Soviet Party-military control
organization, starting with the agencies of the Communist Party and government, and extending down through the KGB, MVD, Armed Forces, and Civil Defense establishment. Using Soviet sources,
few of which have been previously translated into English, the authors examine the multifaceted and overlapping elements in the Soviet control structure, including trade unions, ` "volunteer" groups, and legislative devices such as martial law. The authors trace the historical roots of Soviet control measures, and shed valuable light on Soviet civil defense preparations, command and control responsibilities, and the psychological indoctrination of the population for the possibility of conflict in a nuclear environment.

This timely study provides basic data essential for any realistic appraisal of overall Soviet survival capabilities. In light of the recent world wide attention being focused on arms control and related security problems, The Soviet Control Structure is essential reading for analysts, policymakers, and all serious students of national security affairs.

I was impressed by the scholarship and analysis. Having met Jim Noren, I can attest to the depth behind the words. I can't recommend it enough.

This book is, once again, a classic. It is the best extant survey of Soviet wartime production and its raw data is -alone- worth its (very high) price. It demonstrates quite clearly the immense scale of the effort made by the Soviet Union in its desperate struggle with Nazi Germany and shows how, by employing mass production methods influenced directly by American procedures and by disdaining every frill or amenity which did not contribute directly to increase the war-fighting potential of its equipment, the Soviet Union was able to out-produce Germany, despite its much smaller industrial base. Equally useful is the analysis of Lend-Lease, showing how vital it was for the Soviet war effort, not so much in terms of frontline equipment, but in terms of raw materials and logistical support.

The style, however, is atrocious, unless you like repetitions of entire sentences in different parts of the book.