A Russian Journal (Penguin Modern Classics) (Paperback)

~ (Author), Robert Capa (Photographer), Susan Shillinglaw (Introduction) "It will be necessary to say first how this story and how this trip started, and what its intention was..." (more)
Key Phrases: tractor factory, Soviet Union, Black Sea, Joe Newman (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

After the Iron Curtain was established following World War II, Steinbeck, along with photographer Bob Capa, ventured into the Soviet Union on behalf of the New York Herald Tribune. This 1948 volume collects the full run of his reports with numerous pictures.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Description

Just after the iron curtain fell on Eastern Europe John Steinbeck and acclaimed war photographer, Robert Capa ventured into the Soviet Union to report for the "New York Herald Tribune". This rare opportunity took the famous travelers not only to Moscow and Stalingrad - now Volgograd - but through the countryside of the Ukraine and the Caucasus. A "Russian Journal" is the distillation of their journey and remains a remarkable memoir and unique historical document. Steinbeck and Capa recorded the grim realities of factory workers, government clerks, and peasants, as they emerged from the rubble of World War II. This is an intimate glimpses of two artists at the height of their powers, answering their need to document human struggle.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (May 3, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014118633X
• ISBN-13: 978-0141186337
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #747,604 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A story about both Russia and about two journalists, November 21, 2003

By	Adam Rust "a_rust" (Durham, NC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: A Russian Journal (Classic, 20th-Century, Penguin) (Paperback)

I read this book after returning home from a two week trip in Southwestern Russia. Steinbeck and Capa took their journey in 1948. They travel from Moscow to Volgograd and Rostov before turning back in Georgia. Much of the tension in this book springs from the rapidly cooling relationship between leaders of Russia and the United States at that point in time.

Their aim is not political. They seek to understand the hearts of the Soviet people. One of the amusing elements of this book is their regular conflict with the Soviet censors, who refuse to believe that they do not have political motives. Steinbeck intersperses the commentary on Russia with the nuts and bolts of their daily travels. The method mirrors the approach of his 1940 collaboration in the Gulf of California, "The Log from the Sea of Cortez." Steinbeck likes to write about the universal character of people and this trip to Russia or his previous trip in Mexico both speak to that interest. His conclusion is that Russians are like people anywhere else - they are proud of their homes and their families and are sincere in their efforts to build their nascent country. Steinbeck also goes to pains to elicit the hope among the Russian people for peace.

Many of the things that catch their eye remain constant to now. One interesting change is the perspective of the Russian people about the direction of their country. In Steinbeck's recollection, the people recognize that they are sacrificing for the good of their country. In 1948, the Russians expect that they will eventually gain from their hard work. Now they seem to have less faith.

This book is a great chance to learn about the personality of the world famous Robert Capa. During his travels with the Hungarian photojournalist, Steinbeck gets pretty pesky about Capa's personal habits. It seems that Capa likes long baths, other people's books, and morning silence. Steinbeck and Capa share rooms during their trip. I really enjoyed the secondary theme that develops on Capa's behavior.

Everyone should read this book, not just people who want to know about Russia.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Post-war Russia through very talented eyes, September 8, 2001

By	Michael Casey "Michael" (Atlanta, GA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: A Russian Journal (Classic, 20th-Century, Penguin) (Paperback)

This wonderfully written book takes you through post-war Soviet Union, to farms and cities devastated by war but struggling to return to normalcy. Robert Capa not only adds wonderful photos but his role in this story is both funny and illuminating for any Capa fans. Written in the late 1940s, the story provides us with a very human side of the Russian people. The openness and friendliness of everyone they meet contrasts with the paranoia and hatred so present in the US at that time.

I read this as both a photographer and one who was recently in Russia and the insight provided was very enjoyable and educating. Capa's mannerisms and method of photography allowed his subjects to open up and feel comfortable in his lens -- not an easy thing since so many of the people had lost family and suffered terribly. Steinbeck's writing is honest, funny and his skills as a non-partisan reporter really shine in this work.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In the wake of the War, December 5, 2000

By	Chapulina R (Tovarischi Imports, USA/RUS) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: A Russian Journal (Classic, 20th-Century, Penguin) (Paperback)

Three years after the end of the War, John Steinbeck and photographer Robert Capa made a sweeping journey through the USSR. The countryside and cities were still ravaged by the war, transportation difficult over devastated roads and rails. Shattered tanks and warplanes still littered the landscape. Every family had been touched by the conflict and their everyday life recorded in this memoir was adversely affected by the years of occupation and struggle. But the resilient Soviet people were rebuilding, and in the midst of hardship they welcomed the Western journalists into their homes and lives. This is not a book about political ideology. Steinbeck's elegant writing and Capa's brilliant photography capture the spirit of a people working heroically to restore their homeland but still taking a little time out to have fun. For anyone interested in the human dimension of the War on the Eastern Front, "A Russian Journal" will give an unforgetable impression of its recent aftermath.