A History of Russia: From Rurik to Gorbachev

"Our country is large and rich, but there is no order. Come and rule us." In 862, the Norman chieftain Rurik granted this request from the people of present-day Russia, and in March 2008, Vladimir Putin "arranged" his succession by nominating Dmitry Medvedev as the new president of Russia. What happened in this fascinating country in the meantime? A history of Russia that reads like a political thriller provides the answer.
Rulers such as Ivan the Terrible, Peter and Catherine the Great and colourful figures such as Rasputin emerge one by one from the mists of time. The rise and fall of the Soviet Union (1917-1991) is the most moving period. With increasing amazement the reader experiences both the 'inevitability' of the October Revolution under Lenin and the failure of the communist experiment under Gorbachev.
A History of Russia contains new material that has become available from the Russian state archives since 1988 and has been expanded with two chapters on the Yeltsin-Putin period (1991-2008). The book derives its added value from the afterwork, which contains important information that would keep the reader busy in the text: about the transcription of the Russian alphabet, a timetable, family trees of the Russian royal houses, a survey of the Soviet rulers, a bibliography, a list of Russian terms and an extensive index of persons.
A History of Russia is an indispensable standard work for anyone interested in this leading player on the world stage.