As the Fulbright
Chair at Moscow State University, Bruce C. Daniels had a privileged
position at Russia's most distinguished university and he drew
upon his training, experience and interest to write this easily
read and charming introduction to life in today's Russia. For
four generations Russians lived under Communism and they are
now struggling to incorporate the best of their past into a new
Russia giddy with consumerism.
What are the
results of one of the most remarkable transformations in history?
Ambiguity, bewilderment, confusion and delight. Daniels captures
the texture of daily life in Moscow a decade after this transformation
began and explains the seemingly inexplicable to Americans and
other westerners. As a visiting professor in Moscow, he had daily
access to the thoughts of the best students in Russia and to
many of the country's leading intellectuals. He used students
and colleagues as guides and focus groups to help understand
the complex and paradoxical world he saw unfolding. In chapters
that range from humorous problems he encountered navigating this
evolving social system to descriptions of student life to a discussion
of present politics, Daniels describes the dynamic new country
that is emerging from an old country with a remarkably tenacious
past.
Part political
commentary, part journalism, part comparative history, and part
an observant friend, this memoir will entertain readers and give
them a new understanding of post-Communist Russia.