December 20, 2018

Merriment and Mischief


Merriment and Mischief
The Reckless, the Robotic, and the Rebellious

1. Watch out for fake robots, friends. Even the best among us can fall for their beautiful, shining allure. Russia-24, a state television channel, spent time at a youth robotics forum admiring Boris the “robot,” for his dancing skills. Sharp-eyed viewers were skeptical, asking where Boris’ sensors were, and why his dancing contained so many movements. And, above all, why did photos of Boris reveal a sliver of skin in between his head and body? Alas, Russia-24 had been duped. But let this be a lesson, both to our readers and the so-called robots that would try and take them in: never let them push your buttons.

Robot man

Photo: Gizmodo

2. Russian educators in Perm are finally doing as students want and getting out of their hair. Quite literally, too, as officials have told local schools to stop expelling students based on their hair color. This all started when one student was suspended from classes for having pink hair (the horror!), and the suspension was subsequently investigated. Not to worry, though, schools are still discouraged from letting students wear symbols of “asocial informal youth cultures,” whatever that means, as well as clothes that promote illegal behavior.

3. We get it, you’re Russian. One Siberian daredevil (lunatic?) awed crowds by being swung around in circles while hanging onto an excavator bucket at -37 degrees celsius, after which he was promptly doused by a bucket of water. All this in a pair of shorts and nothing else, no less. This was part of the “Open Winter Siberiada” games, a winter festival in a small town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, in which a variety of stunts and competitions occurred.

In Odder News:

Christmas ticket tree

Photo: Meduza

  • O Christmas ticket tree, o christmas ticket tree: a new Moscow metro art display smashes together holiday and commuting vibes.

  • Was it the 66th car that tipped them off? A Russian transport official was fired after his wife purchased a stunning 66 cars for personal use

  • Move over Khabarovsk, there’s a new capital of the Far East: Vladivostok

Quote of the Week:

“The festival was a big success and the Siberian freeze (minus 37 degrees Celsius) had no effect on the mood of the town’s residents,”

— The company Sibzoloto, commenting on the heartwarming conclusion of the Open Winter Siberiada

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White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

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.  
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Survival Russian

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Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

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.
Murder and the Muse

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.
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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.
Moscow and Muscovites

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. 
Fish: A History of One Migration

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)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

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