What do you think?
Rate this book
A Day In The Life
A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union: Photographed by 100 of the World's Leading Photojournalists on one day, May 15, 1987
In the late spring of 1987, the news spread like wildfire through the international photojournalism The unimaginable was about to happen. After three years of negotiation, the Day in the Life team had finally obtained permission to photograph the Soviet Union. This book is the result of 50 of the Western world's top photojournalists. The pictures in A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union were chosen from over 127,000 images shot on May 15, 1987. None is 24 hours older or younger than any other. 0002179695
240 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1987
4 people are currently reading
236 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
April 12, 2023
On May 15, 1987, 50 American and 50 Soviet photographers took thousands of pictures throughout the Soviet Union, many of which were compiled together into this book. There are many footnotes and explanations of what if pictured, and the back of the book tells the story of how the book came together.
It was a pretty fun read, with lots to feast the eyes upon. And, I learned that even though the Russian bathhouses look stiflingly oppressive with all of that steam, the water in the pool is actually cool/cold, so if you start dying from the heat, you can just jump on in.
It was a pretty fun read, with lots to feast the eyes upon. And, I learned that even though the Russian bathhouses look stiflingly oppressive with all of that steam, the water in the pool is actually cool/cold, so if you start dying from the heat, you can just jump on in.
August 5, 2018
I believe I've had this book since 7th or 8th grade, about 20 years ago, when I had to do a group project for the city's Multicultural Fair or something like that. The book just stood in our group's table, in front of our neat posters and Russian food, but I never actually peered inside it.
UNTIL NOW.
I don't know why I've hauled around this giant coffee book all these years, other than the reason that a book lover has a tough time parting with books they own but have never read, even if they have no real interest in getting around to reading them.
The book is fascinating in the sense that it was produced 31 years ago, and yet you feel like you are peering back in time perhaps 60 years. All these pictures were taken within a 24 hour period on May 15, 1987 around the time the great Soviet Union was beginning to show its cracks.
In the forward and afterwards the writers and project organizers made a big deal about how this project was years in the making, that the Soviet government had turned the project down multiple times before Gorbachev, promoting glasnost, said he was fine with giving world-famous photographers guided access to cities and towns across their nation. For one day, anyway.
You get the impression that lots of places over there are COLD.
I particularly liked a picture of a mother pushing her child in a tiny home-made sleigh car across the snow. Cute by itself, but the next picture is of a small school with a dozen such tiny sleigh cars parked in the snow, all the parents arriving to pick up their children.
There's a few Inuits talking with Soviet guards, the caption reading that where once the native people hunted and fished on their own for centuries they must now carry paperwork that gives them the permission to do so. The waters now belonging to a few Russian naval bases.
A few trains. A few saunas (which over there are called banyas, for my Seinfeld-appreciating friends). Camels being sheered and milked.
There's one of a babushka kneading a giant pile of sausage filler. Yum.
Lennin's image was in the background of many pictures, as were the hammer and sickle. It left me wondering if a lot of Soviet imagery and structures still stand out of historical significance, or if they've since been removed in the twenty-some years past the fall of the Union.
Pretty pictures, but I didn't get any real urge to time travel and go on vacation there.
UNTIL NOW.
I don't know why I've hauled around this giant coffee book all these years, other than the reason that a book lover has a tough time parting with books they own but have never read, even if they have no real interest in getting around to reading them.
The book is fascinating in the sense that it was produced 31 years ago, and yet you feel like you are peering back in time perhaps 60 years. All these pictures were taken within a 24 hour period on May 15, 1987 around the time the great Soviet Union was beginning to show its cracks.
In the forward and afterwards the writers and project organizers made a big deal about how this project was years in the making, that the Soviet government had turned the project down multiple times before Gorbachev, promoting glasnost, said he was fine with giving world-famous photographers guided access to cities and towns across their nation. For one day, anyway.
You get the impression that lots of places over there are COLD.
I particularly liked a picture of a mother pushing her child in a tiny home-made sleigh car across the snow. Cute by itself, but the next picture is of a small school with a dozen such tiny sleigh cars parked in the snow, all the parents arriving to pick up their children.
There's a few Inuits talking with Soviet guards, the caption reading that where once the native people hunted and fished on their own for centuries they must now carry paperwork that gives them the permission to do so. The waters now belonging to a few Russian naval bases.
A few trains. A few saunas (which over there are called banyas, for my Seinfeld-appreciating friends). Camels being sheered and milked.
There's one of a babushka kneading a giant pile of sausage filler. Yum.
Lennin's image was in the background of many pictures, as were the hammer and sickle. It left me wondering if a lot of Soviet imagery and structures still stand out of historical significance, or if they've since been removed in the twenty-some years past the fall of the Union.
Pretty pictures, but I didn't get any real urge to time travel and go on vacation there.
February 18, 2020
Mooie, ontroerende, intrigerende en hilarische foto's, allemaal op dezelfde dag in 1987 geschoten, door de hele Unie heen. De bijschriften zijn overigens soms even wonderlijk als de foto's: de redacteur zet een grote hoeveelheid humor in om bij zijn Amerikaanse publiek wat sympathie op te wekken voor de kameraden van de Sovjetunie.
April 30, 2020
What an amazing book, one does not just read this in a few days. One keeps it forever, and savors the beautiful photography, over and over again. After seeing a Truck Across Australia, and learning about Rick Smolan's photography, I ordered this book and a Day in the Life of America. Although Smolan did not take all of these photographs, the talented photographers he brought together, is a delight, their photography is amazing. If one likes photography, I suggest one checks out his books.
February 28, 2023
Excellent work, particularly in the second half. Suffers from the same problems as other "Day in the Life" books covering diverse countries – the USSR's east is largely overlooked despite providing the best photos. Still a must-read for any tankie.
December 22, 2019
We have found our perpetual coffee book for our perpetual coffee table.
July 5, 2021
While now a historical relic, the photographs still do what they were meant to do when they were taken - capture a single day, though the country they depicted no longer exists.
Read
May 23, 2025read this in half priced books today, probably going back tmr to get it, epic photos
April 15, 2021
Released over 30 years ago, this glossy coffee table book is a bit like a time capsule from a world long gone. This is because both the subject and the technology that underpin the book are effectively dead and buried (though I'm sure there are some who would argue this is not the case). The USSR is of course no more, having been dismantled in 1991, so the photographs and texts herein speak of a country and a society that is now rapidly fading history. The use of physical film, the means by which this book was illustrated, is also very much a thing of the past; the artistry herein is arguably superseded by the digital camera, smartphone etc.
When reading this book it will intrigue the reader dependent upon his or her age. For those of us who can remember the Soviet Union and have memories of dealing with physical film 'A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union' will be focused on nostalgia. Recalling how monolithic and shadowy the old USSR was, perhaps the excitement of Glasnost, and the whole Cold War dynamic will be part of the experience of reading this book. Such readers may also reflect on the logistics and artistry of the photography; how many shots were taken and discarded after development? How did the use of rolls of film influence the aesthetics of the photographers? It may be suggested that the conjunction of these perspectives will make this book very engaging for such a reader.
For those who never knew the USSR as an entity and the experience of using physical film in their cameras 'A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union' will probably be not much more than an historical curiosity. The images and text are highly redolent of the times they came from, and the media they were produced on. There will not be the same connection with this book that may be felt by those readers spoken of in the previous paragraph.
Aside from these aspects of the book's readership, 'A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union' is a pleasant and engaging tome thanks to its core business; i.e. recording human experience through imagery. No matter what one may consider as to reader perceptions, this is an enjoyable collection of words and photos that connect us with people from another time, another place.
When reading this book it will intrigue the reader dependent upon his or her age. For those of us who can remember the Soviet Union and have memories of dealing with physical film 'A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union' will be focused on nostalgia. Recalling how monolithic and shadowy the old USSR was, perhaps the excitement of Glasnost, and the whole Cold War dynamic will be part of the experience of reading this book. Such readers may also reflect on the logistics and artistry of the photography; how many shots were taken and discarded after development? How did the use of rolls of film influence the aesthetics of the photographers? It may be suggested that the conjunction of these perspectives will make this book very engaging for such a reader.
For those who never knew the USSR as an entity and the experience of using physical film in their cameras 'A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union' will probably be not much more than an historical curiosity. The images and text are highly redolent of the times they came from, and the media they were produced on. There will not be the same connection with this book that may be felt by those readers spoken of in the previous paragraph.
Aside from these aspects of the book's readership, 'A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union' is a pleasant and engaging tome thanks to its core business; i.e. recording human experience through imagery. No matter what one may consider as to reader perceptions, this is an enjoyable collection of words and photos that connect us with people from another time, another place.
April 17, 2024
The Sun never sets on the Russian Empire. Is as true a statement then as it is now. *
A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union captures the vast country, or technically, what was once the Soviet union through the photo lenses of 100 photographers from around the world! This book shows us just how varied Russia truly is: from Orthodox Christians in Leningrad (St. Petersburg) to Lamaist Buddhists in Buriatia to Muslims in Samarkand and Jewish Synagogues in Georgia, Russia is home to a storied populace with countless backgrounds.
Slavic, Mongolian, Jewish, Komi . . . You would almost believe that these were photos taken in various countries from around the world with how diverse the cultures are and not strictly Russia. Each photo shares some kind of window into what it might have looked like in the Soviet Union. Every kind of background you could imagine is captured here, frozen in time. I have flipped through this book several times over the years and near every time I am just bewildered with how similar we all are.
Old, young, shepherds, maids, nurses, ballerina, soldiers, gymnasts, children, scientists, farmers, athletes, auteurs, swimmers, horsemen, skateboarders, fishermen rockers and punks. There is so much here to learn and enjoy and discover just how vast the USSR was. Anyone with an appreciation of history, photography and geography will appreciate this as a coffee table book!
*Well, for about 180 days month out of the year this is true
A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union captures the vast country, or technically, what was once the Soviet union through the photo lenses of 100 photographers from around the world! This book shows us just how varied Russia truly is: from Orthodox Christians in Leningrad (St. Petersburg) to Lamaist Buddhists in Buriatia to Muslims in Samarkand and Jewish Synagogues in Georgia, Russia is home to a storied populace with countless backgrounds.
Slavic, Mongolian, Jewish, Komi . . . You would almost believe that these were photos taken in various countries from around the world with how diverse the cultures are and not strictly Russia. Each photo shares some kind of window into what it might have looked like in the Soviet Union. Every kind of background you could imagine is captured here, frozen in time. I have flipped through this book several times over the years and near every time I am just bewildered with how similar we all are.
Old, young, shepherds, maids, nurses, ballerina, soldiers, gymnasts, children, scientists, farmers, athletes, auteurs, swimmers, horsemen, skateboarders, fishermen rockers and punks. There is so much here to learn and enjoy and discover just how vast the USSR was. Anyone with an appreciation of history, photography and geography will appreciate this as a coffee table book!
*Well, for about 180 days month out of the year this is true
April 16, 2024
I Actually got this book used from a book sale my local library was having, it was dirt cheap the day I went I got something like 45 books for around 2 bucks. But as I was in this back room for like records and dvds and stuff and this library volunteer was like “do you need a box?” And I was like “yeah sure” and he got me a big industrial sized Costco box for all my books. So the man starts to help me pack up my books and he picks up this and he goes “woah, I used to work for a printing company and these books are like super expensive” he says as he started to flips though this like 35 inch tall book, it was just a very lovely experience. Also becuse I got this book second hand it had a note in the front, my copy of this book was originally a 40th birthday present from the parents to their son back in 1988
Anyways the book shows the day to day lives of the average citizen of the different parts of the Soviet Union. A few of my favorite pictures are, these men from Kazakhstan (modern day) finishing the last prayer on their eid prayer, this older man from (modern day Mongolia) on a horse with his egal on his shoulder and these group of school girls useing pocket money to buy soda
Anyways the book shows the day to day lives of the average citizen of the different parts of the Soviet Union. A few of my favorite pictures are, these men from Kazakhstan (modern day) finishing the last prayer on their eid prayer, this older man from (modern day Mongolia) on a horse with his egal on his shoulder and these group of school girls useing pocket money to buy soda
February 22, 2020
The photos displayed are rich with emotion.
I especially like the ones where Kodak gave cameras to the kids to snap their day.
Picked up this gem for $3 at a thrift store. Perfect condition it was a rare find.
I especially like the ones where Kodak gave cameras to the kids to snap their day.
Picked up this gem for $3 at a thrift store. Perfect condition it was a rare find.
March 26, 2022
This is the book that sparked a fascination with the Soviet Union in a curious kid. It would remain with me as I earned a degree in Russian and Eastern European history and became a history teacher. It was very interesting to reread as an adult. Incredible pictures and stories.
April 19, 2019
A beautiful book
May 29, 2023
Gorgeous and humanizing, so much was lost in the fall.
August 20, 2024
Changed my life when i wad a child and I still think this is the best photobook in all of history
January 30, 2025
Great coffee table book full of photos all taken on May 15, 1987 all around the former Soviet Union.
Great stuff. Loved this one.
Great stuff. Loved this one.
August 29, 2025
very enlightening book.
August 2, 2008
A beautiful photo book. Today it is probably outdated, but for me, at the time of reading it was great. I gazed through the book, looking at the pictures from a country I knew hardly anything about. The Soviet Union just started to open up and I was learning the language. I looked with great eyes.
When I finally arrived to Moscow, two yeas later, it all wasn't that strange to me. I had 'seen' something already.
When I finally arrived to Moscow, two yeas later, it all wasn't that strange to me. I had 'seen' something already.
December 23, 2013
This wonderful book of "old school" photographs and their captions gives the reader a brief glimpse of a vast country and the many different people who inhabited it in 1987. In many ways it is so very different from what we, in the West, know. On the other hand, one sees the similarities in our humanness as well.
Read
December 11, 2008RefYA1
December 30, 2012
It highlighted the Human side of the then Soviet Union!
August 5, 2016
What a collection of pictures! It gives you a glimpse into what life was like in the Soviet Union.
Read
July 20, 2015An eye-opener when I purchased it in 1988.
The scenes of everyday life gave no real indication of what, shortly, was to come.
The scenes of everyday life gave no real indication of what, shortly, was to come.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews