Russia

A grueling read but wonderful too.
The harshness and brutality are horrifying - all the more so as they are repeated again and again over the centuries. The people have an astounding resilience. Their strength and continuing hope are inspiring.
I keep thinking of those millions of lives cut short in horrifying ways.
I wonder has it stopped yet.

A fascinating, chatty, introduction to Russian history. Sixsmith brings history alive with plenty of anecdotes, and explains the political workings of this very strange place.

A very readable book on the shadowy history of Russia. Growing up the Soviet Union was the dark nation when it came to news, not a lot came out, and what did seemed torqued by propaganda. This book clears up what happened under the Communists.

A highly readable and concise account of Russia's history from the year 1000 to the early years of the 21st century. Accessible, fast moving and well researched and explained, this is popular history at its best. If you buy only one book on Russia, make sure it's this one. Highly recommended

I understand that it is difficult to cover a huge swathe of history and do justice to everything, but I would have preferred to have more information on 'every day' life rather than the same 'great men/women' of history that I already knew about.

I did appreciate that this was a recording of the BBC series, with the music, voices and effects.

A huge tome covering 1000 years of Russian history, and the book of the Radio 4 series.

The first 180 odd pages cover the first 900 years up to the revolution, and then the remainder is from the 1917 revolution. It is a comprehensive history and written in a eminently readable way.

Well worth a read for anyone interested in Russian, and its influence on Europe and the wider world.