A Concise History of Russia (Cambridge Concise Histories)

The author does an incredible job covering the history of this very complex country from the dark ages to today. And unlike many history books, he accomplishes this by just the right amount of detail and facts, thus keeping interest level high. I've always found Russian history fascinating, and this book was the best I've found on Russia. Some have complained the author jumps back and forth too much in time, but I found that to be one of the books strong points. When he is talking about the politics and chronology of events leading to a major event, he covers that over the appropriate time frame. But then when talking about culture or art, he tends to cover those topics separately. For me, trying to integrate too much into the same time period is more confusing than taking a couple or three cuts at it. But everybody has their own way of absorbing information. For me, the author allowed me to learn a ton I didn't know before, even though I've read several books on this topic. It's fairly lengthy, but then again, some books would be this lengthy while only covering 200-300 years while this one covers 1500 years or so.

This is not exactly "concise" as the title promises, since the book is a very densely-packed 460 pages long. The writing is complex and sometimes difficult to follow. I found myself re-reading sentences, or sometimes whole paragraphs to be sure I understood what Paul Bushkovitch was trying to say. That said, this is definitely worth reading. One of the things I found enlightening is the way the author was able to demonstrate that Russian literature and arts were intricately intertwined with the thrust towards the 1917 Revolution. I was surprised at this, and initially skeptical, but came away with a greater vision of the origins of the communist revolution. The book may be dense, but it is packed with information and a unique point of view about the underpinnings of modern Russian historical development. The portions of the book about Russian history prior to the Romanovs are useful, but a bit vague. This is probably because the facts themselves are sparse and ambiguous. I am a big fan of the Cambridge history series, and this does not disappoint. If you are interested in Russian history, I recommend this. Be prepared to pay careful attention, though. This is not for the casual reader.

As an undergraduate I took a strong minor in world history, particularly of Russia. However, as do many things with time, my grasp of Russian history has faded. I purchased this Concise History as a review to support my post-retirement infatuation with great Russian Literature. And it did so beyond my expectations. I keep it as a handy reference as I read Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Gogol, Pasternak, etc. Concerning Pasternak, I found "A Concise History of the Russian Revolution" to be a useful supplement to Dr. Zhivago. The text is very readable and addresses my needs very well. There are some Russian words that, when anglicized, baffle me, so I keep my smartphone internet handy. I recommend this text to anyone wanting an understanding of a millennium of Rus/Russian history without the time or inclination to delve into it's deep scholarship. Thumbs up!

I'm just a little over halfway through with this concise history, but I have already learned many amazing things about Russian tsars, composers and writers. Why I didn't buy this book several months ago, I don't know. If you want to get up to speed on everything Russian after a misspent youth, this is the book. Buy it. Read it. Be edified!

The book does an amazing job tying events and outcomes together that are not necessary happening at the same time and makes it make sense. It is a clear and concise history of russia (as the title says) that stays focused on the topic, but will also dive into other related issues and topics (rather perfectly done) to give context. A great book and I would recommend to anybody who wants a clear and detailed analysis of russian history!

The book provides a helpful overview of Russian history. Due to its limited length there were, of course, times when I wanted to know more about certain topics (for example Russia's various wars in the 19th century (including the Crimean War) are touched upon only briefly, and the Cold War only gets one chapter). However, the purpose of a concise history is to introduce you to the basics so you can determine which topics you want to read more about. Also, the book is refreshing in that it does not seem to have an agenda (at least as far as I could tell). The author's treatment of the Orthodox Church, Tsarist Russia, and the Soviet Union were critical where necessary but did not seem to betray a bias in any direction. My main complaint is that the writing style, while very readable, is somewhat dry and often uses repetitive sentence constructions (for example "to make matters worst" seems to appear on every other Kindle page).

Thank you for this Russian history, well written, easy readable, like a story. It depicts events and life. Recommend it!!

Bushkovich does indeed give a concise history of Russia. On many occasions, the Crimea War for example, I wished for more detail. But in fairness to the author, covering a thousand years or so of history is no simple task - many details are going to end up on the cutting room floor. I also found the reading difficult with a prose I would describe as awkward, with many run on sentences. Finally, rather than the few grainy black and white photos, I would’ve much preferred maps, as many places like Harbin, and Port Arthur are not commonly known places.

Good buy

Great introduction to the subject. Need to understand this country better than we do now

Buen libro para aprender la historia básica de Rusia. Es un relato historico preciso y concreto. El autor no ahonda en rumores o historias que no sean relevantes en términos historicos.

Gran libro para introducirse a la historia de Rusia. Escrito de manera que para el lector resulta agradable e informativo

Decent and minimally biased short survey or Russian history. Probably a good place to start exploration.