January 11, 2021 Women Can Be Metro Drivers, Too A relaxing of workplace regulations means that Russian women can now drive the Moscow Metro. Law Moscow Transportation Women Russia File
December 31, 2020 Taxis, Guns, and Scams This week, we mark the end of 2020 with transportation stats, social media monitoring, and preparations for wild celebrations. Holidays Internet Law Military Moscow Social Issues Transportation Odder News
December 13, 2020 Pay with your Face The Moscow Metro plans to allow passengers to pay with Face ID. Cities & Towns Moscow Transportation Urban Life Russia File
October 30, 2020 Don't Drive Tanked Cars and alcohol don't mix, especially when your job is driving a military IFV. Cities & Towns Food & Drink Military Transportation Russia File
September 21, 2020 What Are You, Blind? Somehow, a blind man in Orenburg has been sporting a drivers' license for the last two years. Cities & Towns Government Health Law Transportation Russia File
September 01, 2020 Moscow's Last Trolleybus Line Public transportation in Moscow is getting an electric facelift, but one trolleybus line will remain, in homage to this mode of transportation. Moscow Pop Culture Transportation Urban Life Russia File
August 13, 2020 Strange Celebrations, Cereal, and Wildlife Sneakiness This week: cereal jingles go viral, animal crossings save critters, and paratroopers take a swim in a fountain in celebration. Sounds pretty run-of-the-mill. Animals Culture Health Internet Media Moscow Music Social Issues Transportation Odder News
August 11, 2020 A Win for the Lada Russia's iconic domestic car has been the highest-selling automobile in the last six months. Business Economy Transportation Russia File
July 16, 2020 Pirates, Pooches, and Another Putin This week, drivers' licenses get a much-overdue update, utility bills make headlines, and we learn that pirates abound in Russia. Animals Cities & Towns Government Internet Law Politics Space Transportation Travel Odder News
June 18, 2020 Help for Grooms, Swimmers are Doomed, and a Prisoner's Rooms This week we have grants for bride-stealing, anthropomorphic cakes, prisoners (and guards) walking on glass, and important advice for your next trip to Chelyabinsk. Customs Environment Food & Drink Health Law Moscow Music Transportation Odder News
June 11, 2020 New Trams, Old Memes, and New Monuments for Old Villages This week's Odder News features monuments for dead villages, ancient memes, and a mirror for Putin. Cities & Towns Environment Health Internet Pop Culture Social Issues St. Petersburg Transportation Odder News
June 04, 2020 Lost Tombstones, Shootouts, and Social Support for Reindeer Herders This week's Odder News reads like a bad movie, full of forgotten headstones, zombies, and a disagreement settled with firearms. Environment History Moscow Science Social Issues Space Transportation Urban Life Odder News
February 28, 2022 to December 31, 2024 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
November 11, 2023 to September 15, 2024 Visions of Transcendence: Creating Space in East and West Wende Museum | Culver City, CA This exhibit highlights the resilience and creative power of people deprived of their freedom or their own place to live. Art Exhibit
93 Untranslatable Russian Words Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
Murder and the Muse KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.
The Little Golden Calf Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.
Fearful Majesty This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
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.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.
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.
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.
A Taste of Russia The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
May 07, 2015 The Most Useful Russian Inventions What do radio, television, the periodic table, and helicopters have in common? Russians were involved in developing all of them – and more! Reference Science 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
March 07, 2022 Russian Life Takes a Pause As the world reels from the horrific, criminal events being perpetrated in Ukraine by Vladimir Putin, the Russian state, and the Russian military, all of us who nurture a love for Russian people, their culture and history, have been heartbroken. It is not easy to remain a Russophile when suddenly, all across the globe, the adjective “Russian” has become toxic. News Russia File
March 14, 2020 Coronavirus Coping: Russian Lit has the Answers Russian literature has an answer for everything. In the times of coronovirus, this is your guide. Art Literature CVSG Russia File
May 09, 2020 Russian/Soviet War Movies You Can Stream Some of the best Russian and Soviet films about World War II that you can stream online. Film & TV Reference War Culture Through Film CVSG Russia File
October 14, 2016 Five Wild Facts about St. Basil's Cathedral On October 14, 1991, St. Basil’s Cathedral was reopened after six decades. Here are five fun facts in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Cathedral’s rebirth. Culture History Religion Russia File