Putin's Russia

by Lilia Shevtsova

Book Overview

This revised edition includes and examination of the recent presidential and parliamentary elections and their effects on Putin's leadership and Russia. Praise for the previous edition: Out of her... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0870032011
• ISBN13: 9780870032011
• Release Date: March 2003
• Publisher: Carnegie Endowment for Int'l Peace
• Length: 298 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.8" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

revised version

I have not yet read the book in its entirety, its for a class, but I expect the revised version of the book to include events that the last one missed out on.

A must read for everyone who cares about Russia

I read the first edition of this book and am reading the new revised edition. If you want to know what Putin is really like and where he may be leading Russia, read this book. I gave a copy to a Russian friend who is fluent in English so that I could get a Russian's opinion. She is in India now but I will post her reaction when I get it.

A realistic look

The reviewers who give this book a bad rating must have picked up the book expecting a pageturner. This book is not one, in the least. That being said; this book is an excellent academic resource and fairly interesting. But I say 'interesting' from the point of view of a political fanatic. If you are joe shmo you will probably abondon this book after the first chapter. Excellently written, impressivly informative, and an all around good book.

Highly Recommended!

Author Lilia Shevtsova gives an authoritative, if undramatic and less than perfectly organized, account of the rise of Vladimir Putin. Boris Yeltsin chose the anonymous, quiet former KGB colonel for one of the world's most powerful jobs, in part because of his loyalty. Putin's clear-eyed pragmatism and his visceral support of George W. Bush's war on terrorism have given Russia otherwise unattainable international significance. Now, will Putin use his power to reform Russia's political institutions and strengthen its framework of democratic governance? This quite readable book goes beyond the headlines and indicates that Russia is still a land of intrigue and mystery, where the only certainty is that there is none. Under that circumstance, Shevtsova has done an admirable job of framing how Russia reached its current state and what historical choices now confront it. The future of Russia is far from set. We very highly recommend this book to those who seek a deeper understanding of one of America's staunchest allies in the war on terror.

Excellent critique of Russia today

This wonderful and VERY readable work is surprisingly up to date (literally fresh of the press) and also extremely insightful. Shevtsova's basic premise, and one that is so true, is that Russians, when confronted with hard times, seem to rely on a "strong leader" to solve problems. She believes that Putin in many ways embodies this theme and that what Russia is truly lacking is not only a democratic culture but democratic institutions with real bite and stability. Respect for the rule of the law, as distinguished from Putin's "dictatorship of the law" is still lacking. Putin is a bit of an ambigious political personality, yet Shevtsova basically cracks the nut; this one is a real treat and sadly isn't available as widely as it should be. Indispensible to the modern Russophile or anyone interested in world events. Bravo.