Russia and its World
Russia in all its aspects has always exerted a pull on me. Its history, art, music, food, landscapes, dress in all varied ethnic glory, and, above all, its literature have a special access to my attention. A major challenge is Russia’s colossal size and diversity of geography. Another continual surprise is the number of its distinctive peoples, each with unique folkways and histories. Russia has had some epic totalitarian regimes over its long history — but it also has been the home of some of the world’s greatest, most creative, and most influential anarchist philosophers. Russia is big enough and complex enough to handle all sorts of contradictions and paradoxes — and to claim them all proudly (and fatalistically, a classic Russian trait).
Over the years I have noticed that my store has become home to a great range of literature, fiction and nonfiction, of the Russian soul and mind and heart. I share it here and may update it as often as possible.
The Anna Karenina Fix
The Anna Karenina Fix
As Viv Groskop knows from personal experience, everything that has ever happened to a person has already happened in the Russian classics: from not being sure what to do with your life (Anna Karenina), to being hopelessly in love with someone who doesn’t love you back (Turgenev’s A Month in the Country), or being socially anxious about your appearance (all of Chekhov’s work). In The Anna Karenina Fix, Groskop mines these and other works, as well as the lives of their celebrated creators and her own experiences as a student of Russian, to answer the question “How should you live your life?” or at least be less miserable. This is a charming and fiercely intelligent book, a love letter to Russian literature.
PRAISE
“Enchanting.”
— The Observer
“For anyone intimidated by Russia’s daunting literary heritage, this humorous yet thoughtful introduction will serve as the perfect entrée. Journalist and comedian Groskop skillfully interweaves her personal obsession with life lessons from the country’s great authors…Most of all, she advocates reading for fun, and of oneself—a life lesson, indeed.”
— Publishers Weekly
“[Groskop is] a delight, a reader’s reader whose professional and personal experiences have allowed her to write the kind of book that not only is complete unto itself, but makes you want to head to the library and revisit or discover the great works she loves.”
— The Washington Post
“This wonderfully entertaining book is a passionate, hilarious, joyful love letter to Russian literature.”
— Allison Pearson, The Telegraph (*****)
"Learn how to hack life 19th-century Russian style! You'll totally be like Anna Karenina without getting (spoiler alert) run over by a train!"
— Gary Shteyngart
"Everyone's happiness project looks different, and for Viv Groskop, reading great works of Russian literature held the key to a happier life. In this hilarious, candid, and thought-provoking memoir, she explains how she used lessons from Russian classics to understand herself better and to create the life she wanted.”
— Gretchen Rubin, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Happiness Project
"A beguiling tasting menu of some of the finest reading experiences of my life. Witty, likeable, and lighthearted, Viv Groskop invites us to embrace the work of these august Russian dead souls as belonging to us all.”
— Lionel Shriver
“Funny, clever and joyful. I loved this book.”
— Nina Stibbe, best-selling author of Love, Nina: Despatches from Family Life