June 01, 2022 Liberated from Home “It was a very happy life, because we lived in peace, tranquility. And the fact that our acquaintances from Russia and relatives say that we were infringed upon in some way [by the Ukrainian authorities] is not true. We lived and rejoiced, made plans for the future. And now the 'liberators' have come and 'liberated' from all the good that was in our lives. Ruined, or rather, want to ruin our lives." – Julia, a nurse in Severodonetsk, a city in Donbass Cities & Towns Family Interview War Quote
May 31, 2022 Russia Forever? A Russian rock musician was filmed helping Russian soldiers replace a Ukrainian road sign with one reading "Russia Forever." Cities & Towns Media Music News War Russia File
May 30, 2022 Where the Streets Have Names Ukraine has begun a "derussification" of street names, replacing them with names of important Ukrainians. Cities & Towns Government Language Russia File
May 29, 2022 Forced Integration through Passportization A presidential decree aims to integrate the inhabitants of conquered Ukrainian regions through a streamlined passport process. Cities & Towns Government Int'l Relations Politics War Russia File
May 24, 2022 An Anthem of Dissent A Russian man in Tyumen was arrested for playing the Ukrainian national anthem in public. Cities & Towns Government Music Russia File
May 17, 2022 Detained on Victory Day Over 125 citizens were detained during Immortal Regiment processions across Russia. Cities & Towns Government History Military Moscow Politics War Russia File
May 12, 2022 Ukraine's Best Friend Patron, a Jack Russell Terrier in Chernihiv, is fighting against the Russian invasion in his own way. Animals Cities & Towns Military War Russia File
May 11, 2022 The Fighters of Azov “Surrender is not an option.” – Ilya Samoilenko, a 27-year-old officer defending Azov. Cities & Towns Interview Men Military News War Quote
May 05, 2022 Russian Troops Storm Mariupol Russian troops have begun to storm the Mariupol steel plant in Ukraine. Cities & Towns Int'l Relations Military News War Russia File
April 30, 2022 Deukrainianization Russian authorities seek to eradicate all and any association with Ukraine... including blue-and-yellow color schemes. Architecture Cities & Towns War Russia File
April 23, 2022 Selling Russia to Support Ukraine A Georgian company is selling NFTs of Russian territories to help rebuild Ukraine. Cities & Towns Geography Internet Regions Russia File
April 22, 2022 Spot the Difference Zoya Cherkassky-Nnadi is creating pieces of art comparing the Ukraine she knew in childhood and the war-riddled Ukraine we see today. Art Cities & Towns Culture News War Russia File
February 22, 2022 to February 22, 2032 Russian-Language Gallery Tour Brooklyn Museum | Brooklyn, NY Russian-language tour exploring our collection in depth, second Sunday of each month at 1 pm. Free, reservations required Art Exhibit
February 28, 2022 to February 23, 2032 Free Russian Language Guided Tours Metropolitan Museum of Art | New York, NY Russian-speaking guides conduct tours of the museum's highlights every Monday at 11 am. Art Exhibit
October 21, 2023 to October 22, 2023 50th Annual Heritage Food Fair Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Church | Baltimore, MD A weekend of music and delicious authentic foods prepared by the parishioners of the Holy Trinity parish in Baltimore. Select from traditional beef stroganoff, shashlik, pelmeni, blinchiki, kielbasa, a variety of traditional breads, desserts, and more! All homemade! Festival
September 22, 2023 to January 21, 2024 Spirituality in Eastern Christianity Museum of Russian Icons | Clinton, MA An exhibition of photographs by Alain de Lotbinière. The 26 images were taken during the course of several trips to Northern Macedonia, Serbia, and Russia, as well as during visits to sites in Turkey and Egypt. Art Exhibit
Jews in Service to the Tsar Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.
22 Russian Crosswords Test your knowledge of the Russian language, Russian history and society with these 22 challenging puzzles taken from the pages of Russian Life magazine. Most all the clues are in English, but you must fill in the answers in Russian. If you get stumped, of course all the puzzles have answers printed at the back of the book.
Marooned in Moscow This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
Fish: A History of One Migration This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.
Woe From Wit (bilingual) One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
Driving Down Russia's Spine The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia.
Steppe / Степь This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
Red Star Tales: A Century of Russian and Soviet Science Fiction For over 100 years, most of the science fiction produced by the world’s largest country has been beyond the reach of Western readers. This new collection changes that, bringing a large body of influential works into the English orbit.
Moscow and Muscovites Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin.
Survival Russian Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
Bears in the Caviar Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
August 22, 2016 Magical Kefir Kefir is the most popular fermented milk in Russia. But it did not get there overnight. Kefir and Russia have a long history... Food & Drink History Russia File
August 22, 2020 Sad Smiles and Kremlin Corruption Recounting a 2008 meeting with activist Alexei Navalny, before he rose to prominence. Government Politics Russia File
March 17, 2019 When Russian Cuisine Turns Georgian Why is Georgian food so popular in Russia? Turns out there's more to it than deliciousness. Culture Food & Drink History Russia File
March 20, 2020 Vodka vs. Coronavirus Russia’s Ministry of Health discussed ways vodka can affect the coronavirus (spoiler alert: not much). Food & Drink Health CVSG Russia File
December 19, 2016 10 Things (And 5 Jokes) You Didn't Know About Brezhnev Soviet leader Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev would have been 110 on December 19. There are plenty of fun facts and surprising jokes behind the eyebrows. History Humor Politics Russia File
January 10, 2014 Why Don't Russians Smile? It is a common trope that Russians never smile. Which of course is interpreted to mean they are unfriendly, gloomy, sullen – positively Dostoyevskian. This, of course, is a complete misreading of body language and cultural norms. Culture Humor Language Russia File
