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review
mjtwo
Patriot | Alexei Navalny
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Pickpick

31 Jan-3 Feb 25 (audiobook)
A fantastic memoir of Alexei Navalny, an incredibly brave Russian who trained as a lawyer and used his education, position and charisma to expose the corruption of Russian officials and challenge Putin for the presidency. Much of the book was written in a prison cell as Navalny was arrested re-entering Russia after his recovery from being poisoned by the state. An important and moving read from such an impressive man.

Chelsea.Poole Such a great memoir. Though tough. 5d
13 likes1 comment
blurb
bookandbedandtea
WHEEL OF FORTUNE | Thane Gustafson
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These are my #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin reads for February 2025. Both sound really good to me ☺️
@TheAromaofBooks

intothehallofbooks I loved The Drift!! 1w
TheAromaofBooks Yay!! Enjoy!!! 1w
34 likes2 comments
review
cant_i'm_booked
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Pickpick

Comprised of three books (“My Childhood,” “In The World,” and “My Universities”) by the famed Soviet writer Maxim Gorky. It‘s touted as one of Russian literature‘s best autobiographies, which I agree with. Gorky (a pseudonym meaning “bitter”), who grew up in ghastly poverty, is a fantastic observer of Russian peasant life and its hard-bitten cruelties alongside its simultaneous spiritual raptures, all under the last half-century of tsarism.

10 likes1 stack add
blurb
majkia
Snowdrops: A Novel | A.D. Miller
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It is snowing in Florida!

AnnCrystal 😍❄️💝. 3w
dabbe Wowza! 🤩❄️🤩 3w
Deblovestoread 😍😍😍 3w
TheSpineView Wow!!! 3w
41 likes4 comments
review
BookishTrish
A Volga Tale | Guzel Yakhina
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Mehso-so

An uneven chunkster about one man in a German settlement in Russia on the banks of the Volga. It couldn‘t quite decide if it wanted to be history, fairytale or magic realism - or maybe was purposefully speaking to these genres and I missed the point.

review
OutsmartYourShelf
Young Stalin | Simon Sebag Montefiore
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Pickpick

Out of Churchill, Hitler, & Stalin, I know the least about Stalin so decided now would be the perfect time to read this first book in the two part series. How did Joseph Dzhugashvili from Georgia become the megalomaniac ruler of Russia & preside over millions of deaths of his own people?

OutsmartYourShelf Even from the start Stalin seemed to have innate confidence in his own abilities & judgment & a powerful personal charisma. This book deals with his life from his humble origins to just after Lenin took power. It's informative but it's very verbose & therefore the text seems very dense. It also seemed a much longer book than it actually was & there are lots of footnotes. 1mo
OutsmartYourShelf Stalin comes across as a sociopath or even psychopath at times: manipulative, able to walk away from those he professed to love without a backward glance (including some of his own children), & an astounding lack of empathy with others. I'm thinking the second book will be very interesting. 4🌟

TWs: adult/minor relationships, animal death (moderate).
1mo
See All 9 Comments
Andrew65 Excellent 🎉🎉🎉 1mo
PuddleJumper Nice! 1mo
Librarybelle Montefiore‘s books all seem a bit verbose. I have a discarded library copy of this one to read some day: 1mo
OutsmartYourShelf @Librarybelle Oh yes, I‘ve got that one too. 1mo
dabbe Wowza. Those eyes just scream to me: psychopath. 😱😱😱 1mo
DieAReader 🎉🤓Great!! 1mo
37 likes9 comments
blurb
bookandbedandtea
WHEEL OF FORTUNE | Thane Gustafson
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TheAromaofBooks Yay!! Enjoy!!! 1mo
30 likes1 comment
quote
charl08
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For several weeks, Max and the rest of the little group made themselves as comfortable as they could in the cellar of a burned-out house. ... they waited for word that they could cross [the Russian border]. The Broido girl spent the days reading popular French novels that she found in the house. Many years later, she could not forget the strange contrast between the abandoned streets outside and the book-lined rooms of the empty house...

35 likes1 stack add
review
Decalino
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Pickpick

In this timely memoir, Ambassador John Sullivan tells the story of his eventful tenure at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow during a time of increasing tension, Covid lockdowns, diplomatic expulsions, and ultimately culminating in the invasion of Ukraine and the death of Sulivan's beloved wife, Grace. Sullivan is an engaging storyteller with an eye for the humorous moments in what could be a very sober recounting of a serious turning point in history.

review
Chelsea.Poole
Patriot | Alexei Navalny
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Pickpick

An unbelievable account of Navalny‘s work opposing Putin‘s regime. This is mostly a prison memoir, as Navalny was arrested reentering his beloved home country of Russia after being poisoned and nearly killed prior and recovering out of the country. He, with the help of his team, has continued to speak from his prison cell, reporting on the the atrocities such as lack of food and healthcare until his untimely death at the hands of the state. ⬇️

Chelsea.Poole I haven‘t been able to stop thinking about this memoir…everyone should read this. Especially poignant as I‘ve been celebrating Christmas with my family while listening to his lonely, ill, and cold experiences in prison left me feeling super extravagant and incredibly grateful. 1mo
BarbaraBB Great review. It does sound like a must read indeed. 1mo
75 likes2 stack adds2 comments