false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173496592m/297901.jpg 297901 1 <p> From the Carpathians in the west to the Greater Khingan range in the east, a huge, flat expanse dominates the Eurasian continent. Here, over more than a thousand years, the history and destiny of Russia have unfolded. In a sweeping narrative, one of the English-speaking world's leading historians of Russia follows this story from the first emergence of the Slavs in the historical record in the sixth century <span class="era">C.E.</span> to the Russians' persistent appearances in today's headlines. Hosking's is a monumental story of competing legacies, of an enormous power uneasily balanced between the ideas and realities of Asian empire, European culture, and Byzantine religion; of a constantly shifting identity, from Kievan Rus to Muscovy to Russian Empire to Soviet Union to Russian Federation, and of Tsars and leaders struggling to articulate that identity over the centuries. </p><p> With particular attention to non-Russian regions and ethnic groups and to Russia's relations with neighboring polities, Hosking lays out the links between political, economic, social, and cultural phenomena that have made Russia what it is--a world at once familiar and mysterious to Western observers. In a clear and engaging style, he conducts us through the Mongol invasions, the rise of autocracy, the reigns of Ivan the Terrible and Peter the Great, the battle against Napoleon, the emancipation of the serfs, the Crimean War, the Bolshevik Revolution, Stalin's reign of terror, the two World Wars, the end of the USSR, to today's war against Chechnya. Hosking's history is shot through with the understanding that becoming an empire has prevented Russia from becoming a nation and has perpetuated archaic personal forms of power. This book is the most penetrating and comprehensive account yet of what such a legacy has meant--to Russia, and to the world. </p> 289025 30 5 2003 Russia and the Russians: A History total:34|5:5|4:14|3:11|2:4| 34 122 56 7 3 0 true false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sun Sep 30 18:20:55 -0700 2007 Wed Dec 19 13:24:36 -0800 2007 more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Apr 20 05:37:25 -0700 2009 Mon Apr 20 05:40:47 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Mon Aug 13 22:16:16 -0700 2007 Thu Jul 26 23:09:51 -0700 2007 Thu Jul 26 23:10:34 -0700 2007 2 0 false false Thu Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Sat Jan 12 22:13:36 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 12 22:13:36 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Mon Aug 06 14:00:38 -0700 2007 Mon Aug 06 14:16:34 -0700 2007 3 0 false false Wed Jun 11 09:52:59 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 11 10:00:27 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Thu Dec 20 05:39:40 -0800 2007 Thu Dec 20 05:39:48 -0800 2007 0 0 false false Sat Sep 26 09:24:54 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 26 09:24:54 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat Sep 12 00:49:58 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 12 00:49:58 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Aug 27 05:16:04 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 28 13:51:48 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Jul 30 21:03:57 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 30 21:03:57 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat Jul 18 03:27:35 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 18 03:27:35 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Jul 14 05:39:58 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 14 05:39:58 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sat Jul 11 09:23:58 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 11 09:23:58 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Wed Jul 01 12:47:15 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 01 12:47:15 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Fri Jul 03 16:13:05 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 27 12:26:27 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 03 16:13:05 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Jun 11 12:57:38 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 11 12:57:38 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Mon May 25 14:29:41 -0700 2009 Mon May 25 14:29:41 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Fri May 08 10:06:32 -0700 2009 Fri May 08 10:06:32 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Wed May 06 11:46:43 -0700 2009 Wed May 06 11:46:43 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=297901