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Title: A beautiful little gem
Review: This is a simply gorgeous book, one of the best I've ever read on Russia and Russians written by a non-Russian. Though it was written in 1960, it is still amazingly relevant, and it's beautifully written, lyrical but never sentimental, open and frank, charming and intimate. The title may seem funny, even quaint but one must remember that at the time it was written, we were in full Cold War and few westerners were encouraged to think of 'Russians as people.' One of the best things about this book too is that unlike most books of this period it does not take an idelogical stand--though it is not pro-Communist in any sense, it is also not using Communism as a stick to beat the Russians with. But equally it does not ignore it. Instead, it tries to get in deep, to the Russian soul, the Russian landscape, the Russian character. And for my money it succeeds very well.A real lost classic, an absolute little gem.
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