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A Short History of Russia by Mark Galeotti
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A Short History of Russia

How the World's Largest Country Invented Itself, from the Pagans to Putin

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Narrator Mark Galeotti

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Length 4 hours 50 minutes
Language English
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A Library Journal 2020 Title to Watch

"Terrific - and an amazing achievement to cover so much ground in such a short and wonderfully readable book."
-Peter Frankopan, bestselling author of The Silk Roads
 
Russia’s epic and dramatic story told in an accessible, lively and short form, using the country's fascinating history to illuminate its future.
 
A country with no natural borders, no single ethnic group, no true central identity, Russia has mythologized its past to unite its people and to signal strength to outsiders. Mark Galeotti takes us behind the myths to the heart of the Russian story:


  • the formation of a nation through its early legends including Ivan the Terrible and Catherine the Great

  • the rise and fall of the Romanovs, the Russian Revolution, the Cold War, Chernobyl and the Soviet Union

  • the arrival of an obscure politician named Vladimir Putin.

A Short History of Russia explores the history of this fascinating, glorious, desperate and exasperating country through two intertwined issues: the way successive influences from beyond its borders have shaped Russia, and the way Russians came to terms with this influence, writing and rewriting their past to understand their present and try to influence their future. In turn, this self-invented history has come to affect not just their constant nation-building project but also their relations with the world.

 

Mark Galeotti, honorary professor at UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies, is one of the foremost Russia watchers today. Based in London, he also runs his own consultancy and is affiliated with thinktanks in the USA, UK and Europe. A prolific author on Russia and security affairs, he has been a professor at New York University and the Moscow Institute of International Relations and an adviser to the British Foreign Office.

Mark Galeotti, honorary professor at UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies, is one of the foremost Russia watchers today. Based in London, he also runs his own consultancy and is affiliated with thinktanks in the USA, UK and Europe. A prolific author on Russia and security affairs, he has been a professor at New York University and the Moscow Institute of International Relations and an adviser to the British Foreign Office.

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Shop the sale

In celebration of Independent Bookstore Day, shop our limited-time sale on bestselling audiobooks from April 22nd-28th. Don’t miss out—purchases support your local bookstore!

Shop now
Celebrate indie bookstores with our limited-time sale! Shop the sale