Echoes of a Native Land : Two Centuries of a Russian Village

by Serge Schmemann

Release Date: 22 February, 1999

Edition: Paperback

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Well researched

A well researched history of a Western Russian village that provides great insight into Russian character, especially the impact of history on forming Russian character today. Written by a New York Times writer who spent ten years in Russia and is a descendent of the nobility that formerly lived in this village.

TO RUSSIA WITH LOVE

Amazing.

The author comes from a family of Russian emigres who fled to the West as a result of the Russian Revolution. Before the Revolution, they were part of the minor nobility that supplied the Tsars with military officers in time of war and high- and mid-level government officials in time of peace. The book is mainly about how this family lived through the tumultuous period before, during and after the Revolution. The descriptions of Russian life during this period are vivid and engaging. The family portraits of people struggling to serve and save their country (and ultimately suffering the cruelest repudiation by it) are poignant. And the pages sparkle with objective analysis and insight. In spite of his family background, he does not grind axes or pine away for what was lost. And yet, although much was lost, his love for Russia and its people is clear. He sees clearly that the old order that was swept away in 1917 had its shortcomings, shortcomings that he warns may yet undermine contemporary Russia's latest experiments with constitutional democracy.