Transforming Russia from Empire to Commonwealth 1682-1991 - Hardcover

Roberson

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689314957 ISBN 13: 9780689314957

Publisher: Atheneum, 1992

Synopsis

A study of three hundred years of Russia's turbulent history traces the philosophies, events, and individuals who have shaped Russia, from the rise of Peter the Great, through the Russian Revolution, to the recent fall of communism.

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Reviews

Grade 8-12-- The recent changes in the Russian political system seem sweeping to those familiar only with the communist USSR. However, as this book shows, Russia has undergone almost continual political upheaval from the days of Peter the Great. Coverage of the years of the Romanovs, the Bolshevik Revolution, Stalin's reign of terror, Kruschev and Brezhnev's regimes, and the changes wrought by Gorbachev is detailed and clear. However, the text is quite dry, perking up a bit in the section on Catherine the Great, but generally droning on implacably. The information is correct, the chronological flow easy to follow, but the lack of verve in the prose relegates this to the report-source category. Those looking for up-to-date information will be satisfied, and the extensive bibliography lists numerous supporting sources. Black-and-white photographs are well placed and extend the text ably. Students might be well served by pairing this with Graham Yost's The KGB (Facts on File, 1989), which despite an irritatingly ``gee whiz'' style, provides not only relief from the vanilla approach taken here, but also shows the same sets of political circumstances from the persective of the espionage involved. --Ann Welton, Terminal Park Elementary School, Auburn, WA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Atheneum
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0689314957
• ISBN 13: 9780689314957
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 173