Does the news cycle depress you? Have you lost any hope in the emergence of a hero for our time who might direct our political …
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I asked you what you thought of my books and blog. Here’s what you said.
Well, it looks like winter's finally done. After a snowstorm on April 30, we've finally made it over the hump. It's been 80 …
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Anna Dostoyevsky: the Heart of Soul of Russia’s Greatest Author, Part 2
Last week, you were introduced to one of the most fascinating and fruitful romances of literary history. Feodor and Anna …
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Constantine the Great: Russia’s Secret Tsar
The problem of power and personality is one that has fascinated people from the beginning of history. We are going to through our …
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The Rosetta Stone for Old Rus Was… a Piece of Birch Bark?
Have you read Evgenii Vodolazkin’s excellent novel Laurus? If you haven’t, you’ve deprived yourselves of a rare experience of …
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The strange tale of how Napoleon’s soldiers became Cossacks
You know that scene in Godfather II where young Vito is given the last name “Corleone” by the American border guard, only because …
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Don’t blame the Byzantines: Why does Russia have such problems?
One of the early readers of my first novel complained that I had too many adjectives in my writing. He was absolutely right; I was …
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What do the most popular Russian insults actually mean?
Something a little less serious this week for your reading pleasure. I found a rather absurd little article about the historical …
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The Curse of the Murdered Prince Dmitry of Uglich
Several episodes in Russian history are so fanciful that they read like novels. One of the more mysterious and interesting is the …
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The Path of the Artist: remembering the art of Pavel Ryzhenko
As a writer, I find myself as inspired by painters as I am by other writers. One of my favorite artists is Pavel Ryzhenko, who …
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“Moscow is the Third Rome”: a pivotal moment in Russian history?
My first novel The Song of the Sirin imagines a strange scenario: what if the early Russians were the chosen people of God? What …
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Nicholas II, the Armenian Genocide, and Donald Trump
Refugees have been on a lot of people's minds lately. First it was the waves upon waves of refugees escaping the horrors of …
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Villains of Slavic Mythology: Koshchei the Deathless
This week we're continuing the theme of "the invisible world in Slavic mythology." After the hero has passed the trials of Baba …
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What might have happened if there had been no revolution in 1917?
What might have happened if there had been no revolution in 1917? The Russian Revolution of 1917 was an event that …
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Medieval mystery: who really killed Boris and Gleb?
It seems everyone in the US is (justifiably) getting riled up over the impending demise of the National Endowment for the …
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Maslenitsa: the meaning, history, and traditions of “Russian Mardi Gras”
Russians generally have a bad rap as being dour and grumpy. Some Russians will even agree with this characterization, making a …
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The Battle of the Ugra: How Rus Threw Off the Tatar Yoke
It was late autumn, 1480 AD. Russian warriors, under the command of Grand Prince Ivan III, stood on the banks of the River Ugra. …
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The problem of Church and state: Russia in 1917
A major theme in my first novel, A Lamentation of Sirin, is the difficult relationship between Church and state. It seems clear to …
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