February 15, 2021

Russian Government Goes Super Saiyan on Anime


Russian Government Goes Super Saiyan on Anime
No, this isn't Russia. But we were concerned about the internet rabbit holes leading from a search of pictures of anime, so we picked this photo. ElHeineken, Wikimedia commons

Here's a story that will make your edgy inner teenager storm out of the family room: a Russian court recently ruled that certain Anime series be banned from distribution in Russia.

The ruling, passed last month even as arguments to extend the measures continue, would pull Japanese series like "Death Note," "Tokyo Ghoul," and "Inuyashiki" from popular websites from which Russian teens tend to download episodes. Other anime, including the somewhat-more-mainstream "Naruto," are also under discussion to be banned.

Arguments for the measures center around their violent content, which some Russian parents and authorities say encourages similar violence among teens.

Fortunately, there's plenty of other stuff on the internet to fill your day. Just keep it G-rated.

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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.
The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

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.
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 Moscow Eccentric

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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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Moscow and Muscovites

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The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

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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.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

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Woe From Wit (bilingual)

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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.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

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