From Library Journal
The current political, social, and economic strife in Russia lends urgency to this compilation of essays about its transformation from communism to capitalism. Glad (political science, Univ. of South Carolina) and Shiraev (political science, George Washington Univ.) have pulled together an impressive list of nine writers from both the United States and Russia to give balance, perspective, and insight into Russia's cultural transformations over the past decade. Unfortunately, the book suffers from poor organization: the writings seem a bit disjointed until the conclusion, where Andrei Melville explains that "to even attempt to understand such a complex process, a holistic approach employing concepts from several different disciplines is almost a necessity." Read the last chapter first for a proper understanding of each successive writerAand refer to the wonderful tables by Gordon Smith, which clearly explain the stages of transformation.AHarry V. Willems, Southeast Kansas Lib. Syst., Iola
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
“The Russian Transformation is a fascinating and instructive volume that should be of interest to historians, political scientists, and students of the psychology of political change. Professors Glad and Shiraev are to be commended.” —Fred I. Greenstein, Princeton University“Glad, Shiraev and their coauthors have written a balanced, integrated and perceptive assessment of the revolutionary changes that have engulfed Russia over the course of the past decade and a half. As is the case with many other books covering this topic, they provide a solid historical overview of major developments during the period. Much more important, however, is their contribution to an understanding of the place of key leaders--Gorbachev, Shevardnadze, and Yeltsin--in the process of change and their emphasis on the crucial importance of the psychological dimensions of economic and political transition. As they emphasize, unless one understands the complex factors associated with attitudinal and value change, it is especially difficult to understand developments in postcommunist Russia. Finally, the book is written in a clear and straightforward style and is integrated into a single argument much more effectively than is the case of most multi-authored books.” —Roger E. Kanet, Professor and Dean, School of International Studies, University of Miami“An extensively researched and methodically innovative book, it provides political, cultural and psychological explanations for the peaceful end of the cold war as well as today’s instability of young Russian democracy.” —Vladislav Zubok, Senior Fellow, National Security Archive
