The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia

by Masha Gessen

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History. Politics. Nonfiction. HTML:WINNER OF THE 2017 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD IN NONFICTION FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARDS WINNER OF THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY'S HELEN BERNSTEIN BOOK AWARD NAMED A BEST BOOK OF 2017 BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, LOS ANGELES TIMES, WASHINGTON POST, BOSTON GLOBE, SEATTLE TIMES, CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR, NEWSWEEK, PASTE, and POP SUGAR The essential journalist and bestselling biographer of Vladimir Putin reveals how, in the space of a generation, Russia surrendered to a more virulent and invincible new strain of autocracy. Award-winning journalist Masha Gessen's understanding of the events and forces that have wracked Russia in recent times is unparalleled. In The Future Is History, Gessen follows the lives of four people born at what promised to be the dawn of democracy. Each of them came of age with unprecedented expectations, some as the children and grandchildren of the very architects of the new Russia, each with newfound aspirations of their own�??as entrepreneurs, activists, thinkers, and writers, sexual and social beings. Gessen charts their paths against the machinations of the regime that would crush them all, and against the war it waged on understanding itself, which ensured the unobstructed reemergence of the old Soviet order in the form of today's terrifying and seemingly unstoppable mafia state. Powerful and urgent, The Future Is History is a cautionary tale for our time and for all ti… (more)

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Masha Gessen is a remarkable human being - very smart, deeply knowledgeable about history, geography and humans, and profoundly insightful. The book covers changes in society, government, beliefs and expectations in the USSR & Russia. I learned a lot; she gave me context and continuity. (

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RickGeissal | Aug 16, 2023 |

The narrative is of seven Russians born in the early to middle 1980s who grew up under Putin; Zhanna Nemtsov, Masha, Seryozha Yakovlev, Lyosha, Marina, Lev Gudkov, and Alexander Dugin who present their story with five of them having satellite narratives by family members. Author Masha Gessen was born in Russia and grew up in the shadow of Putin and was ultimately forced to flee with her family to the West. The Soviet Union is the world’s longest serving totalitarian state, an evil empire, and an existential threat, which Gessen makes crystal clear is her recounting of the events in the live of individuals chosen. It is a stark, raw, exposé of Putin’s channelling of his heroes Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, and Stalin. (

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ShelleyAlberta | Apr 15, 2023 |

Great book. If you want to understand the history of Russia; the collapse of the Soviet Union; how Putin came to power; and why the war in the Ukraine has not resulted in him losing power thus far-- this is an excellent book to read. Gessen was born (1967) and raised in Russia and lived it.

I listened to the audio book which has the advantage of being read by Gessen. But if you are not a Russian speaker, you will have to stay on top of it carefully to keep the Russian names straight. If you want to listen to the audio version I suggest also buying a paper copy or getting a library copy to help.

Gessen limits herself to writing about Russia, but one could write a separate book about the Trump Republicans use of political tactics perfected by Putin. (

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Michael_Lilly | Jul 12, 2022 |

Áhugaverð bók. Gessen lýsir þróun síðustu ára í Rússlandi frá falli Sovétríkjanna allt fram á okkar daga. Til viðbótar þessu yfirliti fylgir hún eftir nokkrum einstaklingum sem fæddust hrunárið 1991 og upplifðu ólguna í samfélaginu fyrstu árin eftir hrun Sovétríkjanna og hvernig Putin og klíka hans snéri við lýðræðisþróuninni og kom á mafíu/harðstjórnarríki. Gessen leitast einnig við að skilgreina og útskýra hvernig samfélagið í Rússlandi er í dag og hvers vegna Rússar hafa látið þessar breytingar yfir sig ganga. Gefur fína innsýn í ólgandi samfélag í mótun. (

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SkuliSael | Apr 28, 2022 |

This is an amazingly insightful book about Russia, from the end of the Soviet era to the near present, charting the rise of Putin's increasingly authoritarian mafia state through the stories of several characters living through this period. What especially struck me was how many parallels there are between Putin's twisted belief system pairing Russian nationalism and Orthodox Christianity mixed with toxic masculinity, including his chosen enemies (liberalism, gays, imaginary pedophiles), and the US Christian nationalist radical movement that has overtaken the Republican party. It's certainly timely reading.

bfister | Mar 27, 2022 |

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Boston Globe Best Book (Nonfiction – 2017)

Christian Science Monitor Best Book (Nonfiction – 2017)

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BuzzFeed Best Books (Nonfiction – 2017)

Chicago Public Library Best of the Best: Adults (2017)

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The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia

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Awards and honors

National Book Award (Nonfiction, 2017)

National Book Critics Circle Award finalist (Nonfiction, 2017)

Arthur Ross Book Award (Bronze Medal, 2018)

Leipzig Book Award for European Understanding (2019)

NYPL Helen Bernstein Award (2018)

Epigraph

Dedication

In memory of Svetlana Boym

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(Prologue) I have been told many stories about Russia, and I have told a few myself.

On the seventieth anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution, Masha's grandmother, a rocket scientist, took Masha to the Church of St. John the Warrior in Central Moscow to be baptized.

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History. Politics. Nonfiction. HTML:WINNER OF THE 2017 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD IN NONFICTION
FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARDS
WINNER OF THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY'S HELEN BERNSTEIN BOOK AWARD
NAMED A BEST BOOK OF 2017 BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, LOS ANGELES TIMES, WASHINGTON POST, BOSTON GLOBE, SEATTLE TIMES, CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR, NEWSWEEK, PASTE, and POP SUGAR
The essential journalist and bestselling biographer of Vladimir Putin reveals how, in the space of a generation, Russia surrendered to a more virulent and invincible new strain of autocracy.
Award-winning journalist Masha Gessen's understanding of the events and forces that have wracked Russia in recent times is unparalleled. In The Future Is History, Gessen follows the lives of four people born at what promised to be the dawn of democracy. Each of them came of age with unprecedented expectations, some as the children and grandchildren of the very architects of the new Russia, each with newfound aspirations of their own�??as entrepreneurs, activists, thinkers, and writers, sexual and social beings.
Gessen charts their paths against the machinations of the regime that would crush them all, and against the war it waged on understanding itself, which ensured the unobstructed reemergence of the old Soviet order in the form of today's terrifying and seemingly unstoppable mafia state. Powerful and urgent, The Future Is History is a cautionary tale for our time and for all ti

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