Radio theater is a literary genre of its own, with its particular rules. To translate efficiently into it these enormous works -both in size and complexity- is a task that is successfully accomplished by L.A. Theater Works, its cast and its writer. One is carried away by the excellent acting and effects, and the stories are presented so that one understands their development and feels the power of the situations.

It is great to listen to these important stories and catch most of their implications, while, for example,driving your car. This dramatisations bring them to life far more efficiently than a severe abridged reading of the original book that I possess also -of "The Idiot"-.

If you like audio drama and Dostoievski, this is your best choice.

The Brothers Karamozov is an epic yet personal novel that will knock the wind out of you. My favorite character is the vapid Grushenka who bedevils all of the slightly twisted Karamozov brothers and Father. A great book for its religious, historic, and lyrical values.

"Brothers Karamozov" is so good right from the first paragraph that I literally could not put it down -- I read it while cooking, during an ultrasound exam (!), even for 5 minutes in church! It's a grand, sweeping epic of a novel, which reads like the latest page-turner on the best seller list -- the characters are so vivid & real & 3D, the most amazing & appalling things keep happening to them and keep being caused by them, & yet at the same time it's a fascinating look at 19th cent. Russian life & mores, at religion, at the psychology of families....just a FANTASTIC novel, I've never read a finer one!!

This book lends incredible insight into the life of a Russian Refusenik under the oppressive Soviet system. Sharansky's mental tricks that sustained him during his years of horrific incarceration as well as his genius and amazing memory impressed the hell out of me.

Learning how one man could take on the KGB and outsmart, outwill, and outlast them is a truly uplifting experience.

Sharansky's autobiography is one of the most compelling works of literature that I have read. This is literature - it made me pause to think and reflect on what he said frequently, and my copy is well-thumbed. The story is of a spiritual journey, as the young Sharansky's awareness of his Jewishness de-Sovietizes him and leads him into the Gulag - willingly, as he forknew the risks of protesting Soviet emmigration policy. His voluntary civil disobedience seperated him from his bride, Avital, physically for a decade, but the growing intensity of the spiritual forces working within and through him bonded them ever more securely. The moral courage demonstrated by one of the most celebrated of the Refusniks is evident on nearly every page. The spiritual uplift that Sharansky found came from his faith, and from reading the classics, one of the few liberties permitted him in the Gulag. (Looted libraries and personal collections left the prison system well-stocked for this purpose.) The comments on how he was encouraged by his encounter with Aristophanes, when he understood the connection between himself and a character in a 2,500 play through a joke that he finally 'got,'are among the most uplifting in the book. Sharansky recounts how that joke opened a floodgate in his mind, through which came pouring the voices of Rabelais, Cerevantes and other great classics, reminding him of his humanity and the ways of man. The climatic chapter, "The Interconnection of Souls," should be re-read many times. -Lloyd A. Conway

It's hard to believe that one person could morally and intellectually defeat the KGB all by himself, to preserve his identity and his integrity despite all odds. There are many lessons for our everyday life that one can learn from this book. I recommend it very highly.

The illustrations in this volume are lush and expressive-- Baba Yaga is truly a sight to see. Boris Zvorykin's vivid imagination perfectly complements the stories, bringing them to life without overshadowing them. Of all the books I read as a child, this is no doubt one of the most memorable and most touching.

Like a fool over 22 years ago I gave my copy to my nieces my copy of this most wonderful storybook. The illustrations are some of the most imtensive color printing I've seen in many years, the stories are equally wonderful, and would be welcome in anyones' fine book collection.

The full-page illustrations in this book are simply stunning. The soft pastels blend with the glittering jeweltones, and the fantasy settings and gorgeous characters are sumptuously detailed. Each plate is a work of art and suitable for framing; believe me, if you have a color scanner/printer you'll be grateful. Notes at the end of the book inform us that the illustrations are reproduced from the original gouache paintings, and the pages are in heavy glossy paper.

There are four tales in this volume: The Firebird, Maria Morevna, Vassilissa the Fair, The Snow Maiden.

The pictures will take your breath away. The stories are charming and well translated (from an older Russian translated into French volume), but you will probably be too taken away by the glorious art to really pay much attention to the not-really-for-small-children fairy tales.

Peters does it again. A magnificent combination of strong characters and geopolitical reality and a fine primer on the political importance of Uzbekistan that was written nearly a decade before 9/11.

This book may be in the wrong category. I would not really place it in the action group becuase it is a display of a deep character driven novel. It is really a very interesting look at this difficult time for Russian's. It was also much more enjoyable then I thought it would be. The descriptions of the locations and main home were very good. I also liked the characters that were created. They had depth and feeling, not just scratch the surface to fill pages. The book is not the feel good hit of the year, it does had a rich plot that you need to keep up with, but the author rewards your efforts with a masterly written book. I think when it comes down to it that is the strength here, the writing is just very good, a lot of feeling comes out.

The prologue. Ralph Peters gives you the perspective, the eyesight, of a Soviet Third Shock Army officer stationed in East Germany, 1989. Inside the Magdeberg headquarters, you drink vodka with the Russion generals. You smell the stink of their fear-sweat. You hear their outrage and lack of understanding as the East Germans protest down the streets against them. Against you.

Ralph Peters gets you so close to them, you not only feel the scratchy wool of their uniforms, but when word comes that the locals are tearing down the Berlin Wall... it hits you with the same end-of-the-world kidney punch as it must have hit real-life Soviet officers.

And that's just the first few pages. Next up, we have exotic locals, both hot and cold, intrigue, plots, Islamic terror, and some of the hottest (...romance) to ever land on the pages of a hardcover novel.

Plus the usual heaping dose Ralph Peters of tragedy.

Beg, borrow, buy, or steal this book.

Reviewer Bryant below is correct: Poe's work has been the cutting-edge of early Modern Russian scholarship, and this comprehensive tome will add to that reputation. More than just a list of sources, this bibliography is, well, a really long list of sources (and it's analytic to boot!)

It is rare that one can use words like `gripping' for abstruse texts such as this, but I could not find another word in the English language that more accurately describes it. I await the sequel with bated breath.

I agree with Boke's assessment, save for his consistent misspelling of "empiricism".

I used my wife and daughter as an excuse to buy this book. This is an excellent addition to any kettlebell lifters library, more drills and routines to try. It's amazing the variety of exercises that are depicted for a kettlebell. If you are not yet a kettlebell user, buy this book and the "Russian Kettlebell Challenge" book and/or video. If you want to add some variety to your workouts, don't cheat yourself out of this.

I was unsure if I should purchase this book since I already have the Russian Kettlebell Challeng book. But after I purchased it, it was well worth the money. It has a lot of different drills that both men and women can perform. I am very pleased with my purchase and look forward to Pavels next book.

Resistance training is entirely new to me. For that reason, an associate of Mr. Tsatsouline suggested "Tough Love" as a good starting place for me. I began by buying one (35 lb.) kettlebell and the associated video. The video is quite specifically instructional and very cleverly and efficiently arranged. Mr. Tsatsouline explains in economical detail exactly what should be done and (as importantly) exactly what must be avoided. At the same time, attractive (and very strong) female associates demonstrate, both in front view and side view how the moves are accomplished.

The way to prove whether a product is good or bad is to learn its proper use and then use it consistently, almost every day, for a long time. If you find improvement in yourself, then the product is good. Otherwise, it is a bad or worthless product. I am already getting good results. Of at least the same importance, the exercises don't hurt me (at the time I do them). I don't feel as though I am systematically injuring myself by doing the exercises (as is sometimes the case with other resistance training that I've tried---very briefly---and abandoned). Although my own personal proof of this particular pudding is not yet finished, it appears to be going very well. Apparently, this book/video combination gives very true and useful information in exercise physiology---information many of us can use very much. Realizing that we are paying for information that we can use to improve our own physical lives a lot, I have to conclude that the materials are not overpriced. Ineffective instructional materials are overpriced. This, apparently, is worth the price (and probably more), contrary to some other reviews.

This is a beautifully touching book that takes a glimpse into the lives of people impacted by and living through Europe during the war and the following decades. It covers the lives of many people in Germany, Hungary, etc. in a way that makes you truly appreciate the impact to people's lives and sense of identity. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in this period of time.

I don't know if the author Kaufman is Jewish or not, but his account appears not to be opinionated, biased, judgmental, or one-sided, but gains its strength through the characters or the situation "talking," rather than the author explaining things as Goldhagen tried to do in Hitler's Willing Executioners. I had read quite a few books on the Holocaust and wondered what happened after the war. Kaufman answers this question clearly and to the point, and for this I give him five stars. - As for the book's readability, as noted in previous reviews, the narrative introduces us to several Jewish families in different East European countries, and lets us "follow them" closely from the war's end to after the Berlin Wall fell. The result is quite good and, at the same time, very surprising and unexpected, at least to me; the characters are alive and real and they and their histories will remain in the reader's memory for some time. - Overall, I think Kaufman did an excellent job in answering my question as to what happened to the European Jews after the war. I was impressed.

Inspiring fascinating journey into the "heart of the world," former communist block countries where Jews are coming out of the woodwork. Kaufman does a fabulous job tracking down some amazing people and telling stories which need to be told. I've recomended this book to all of my friends. None of them has bothered to read it and frankly I'm sorry for them because reading this book is a life enriching experience. Three cheers for Kaufman

This book is the most important description of the soviet terror that stroke the whole society in communist countries much before Soljenistin. When published, all communist parties in Europe, continued to refuse to see the horrible reality for decades, showing that communism equal nazism. This book should be reprinted and advertised as a piece of XX century History

This book is probably the best book written about the extremes to which a government can systematically abuse it citizens, and how one individual can live through the horror and document the story first hand. Takes place in Stalinist Russia, but the back drop could be any totalitarian regime.

I was given this book to read by someone who escaped the "workers' paradise" in Europe. For those who underestimate the evil of the Communist Party, you will quickly be awakened.

I chose this title, because it was true, at least for me. As Americans, we (some of us, not all) "think" Russians are not "very intelligent", "backward" and even, "less than human."
After reading this book, I tend to "get on my soapbox" to help people understand what few choices, the Russian people ever had in the outcomes of their lives! I never knew this before purchasing and reading Mr. Lincoln's book!
If you cannot be convinced by the poverty imposed on the Russians through Mr. Lincoln's words, you will be convinced by the heart-wrenching photographs; the children who appear as hopeless, hovels designed as homes with animals living within, death from starvation was not uncommon. And all the time, Russia refused (those in power prior to the Revolution)to feed her people, wheat was being shipped to other European countries.
And the Russians never questioned the motives of the Tsar; after the Revolution, they still starved and were murdered by Stalin and Hitler.
We need to change our attitudes and this book did it for me.

In the forward, W. Bruce Lincoln states the book is "...an effort to explore the lives, thoughts, hopes, and dreams of the men and women who lived in the world's largest empire and to convey some sense of the tensions that tore at the fabric of their existence on the eve of the Great War and the Revolution of 1917." In this effort he succeeds brilliantly.

We see portraits of Tsar Alexander III, Nicholas II, Pobedonostsev, Lenin, Rasputin, and a host of other generals, officials and ordinary people who shaped that era.

We get an insider's look at what life was like in a peasant community, inside the peasant's izba or house, and their attitudes towards schooling, medicine and religion. We go inside the growing factories and the slums the workers inhabited in the cities with rapidly developing industry. We see the new nobility of the industrial barons, the revolutionaries fighting the tsarist autocracy, the defenders of the Old Order...all come to life in these pages.

Graphic descriptions are given of the vicious pogroms against Jews. The impact of the Trans-Siberian Railroad in both economic and a political aspects is covered. The 1904 war with Japan is there with its criminally incompetent generals and and admirals and the war's impact on the development of the Revolution of 1905 as well as the mood of the populace as the nations slides toward the Great War.

This well written, illuminating, detailed and well documented book is a classic work on the Russian society of those years and fleshes out the soul of Russia as few other books do. 16 pages of photos. Highly recommended.

The book I ordered, In War's Dark Shadow, was exactly as the seller described it - in perfect condition. Since the book is not longer in print, I feel lucky to find one that looks as if it has never been used. The book was shipped promptly, and the seller was a pleasure to work with. I highly recommend this seller!

thanks!

I have never been able to get my hands on the fourth book in this series, so this one was a bit hard to follow. Especially since I read it before reading number three. I must admit, I found it rather boring. And does the author have something against the Fedorcenkos? It wasn't as sad as the third one, but it was still a tear-jerking book.

The story is shifted away from Anna and toward Marianna in this book, however it is no less interesting. All seven books in the series get five stars from me!

The Russian series has been one of the best I've read. There is so much history out there that I have never really learned much about, and these books make it exciting to expereince history. You become so engrossed in the characters and the story as it goes through the Russian history and learn so much as you view it through the eyes of each character.The author makes you feel as if you are right there and know these people personally. In this book, as the people face another war, you feel the devastation and desperation they felt.I also love how the author interweaves faith and trust in God throughout the story in the characters lives. The books are very hard to put down and you'll want to read the entire series.