January 04, 2026

An Author by Any Other Name...


An Author by Any Other Name...
Yes, there can be too many. The Russian Life files.

A recent report by the BBC's Russian service revealed that Russian publishing giant AST has been using ghostwriters to churn out books for years – to ill effects.

Ghostwriters who produce for AST write prodigiously: some write as many as 20 books a year. But while ghostwriting is widespread around the world, and while AST claims that it meticulously checks the facts contained in its books, readers have begun to notice a spate of errors.

Notably, AST publishes a series called "The Complete History of a Country," where ghostwriter Sergei Nachaev covers the history of different countries. The authors are purported to be residents and scholars of these countries, with names like Azadi Hussein (author of the Iran entry) and Lehman Herschel (Israel). In reality, Nachaev has written them all.

As a result the Russian perspective has shone through via obscure conspiracies. The book on India, for example, mentions "a highly developed civilization [that] existed on the country's territory, which perished in a clash with extraterrestrial aliens" from "nuclear weapons."

We're going to need to see the sources on that one.

Perhaps most interesting is the book on the United States, written by one Sage Tippot (a name about as plausible to American ears as Art Vandelay). According to the BBC, the portrayal of the U.S. in the book is not explicitly erroneous, and, once the book gets to the twentieth century, it glosses over any Soviet aggression during the Cold War, painting the United States as an single-minded aggressor plotting for world domination. This is closely in line with the popular Russian telling of the period. In addition, of the two epigraphs at the start of the book, one appears to be sourced from Wikipedia.

The BBC speculated that the rise in low-quality books is caused by non-bibliophiles getting editorial jobs and clamoring for high levels of production. For our part, we book-lovers at Russian Life only endorse history books written by non-ghostwriters.

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Some of our Books

The Samovar Murders
November 01, 2019

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.

Jews in Service to the Tsar
October 09, 2011

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.

A Taste of Russia
November 01, 2012

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.

The Little Humpbacked Horse
November 03, 2014

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

Bears in the Caviar
May 01, 2015

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.

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices
May 01, 2013

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.

Little Golden Calf
February 01, 2010

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.

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

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. 

The Moscow Eccentric
December 01, 2016

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.

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