After the fall of communism, Russia was in a state of shock. The sudden and dramatic change left many people adrift and uncertain—but also full of a tentative but tenacious hope. Returning again and again to the provincial hinterlands of this rapidly evolving country from 1992 to 2008, Susan Richards struck up some extraordinary friendships with people in the middle of this historical drama. Anna, a questing journalist, struggles to express her passionate spirituality within the rules of the new society. Natasha, a restless spirit, has relocated from Siberia in a bid to escape the demands of her upper-class family and her own mysterious demons. Tatiana and Misha, whose business empire has blossomed from the ashes of the Soviet Union, seem, despite their luxury, uneasy in this new world. Richards watches them grow and change, their fortunes rise and fall, their hopes soar and crash. Through their stories and her own experiences, Susan Richards demonstrates how in Russia, the past and the present cannot be separated. She meets scientists convinced of the existence of UFOs and mind-control warfare. She visits a cult based on working the land and a tiny civilization founded on the practices of traditional Russian Orthodoxy. Gangsters, dreamers, artists, healers, all are wondering in their own ways, “Who are we now if we’re not communist? What does it mean to be Russian?” This remarkable history of contemporary Russia holds a mirror up to a forgotten people. Lost and Found in Russia is a magical and unforgettable portrait of a society in transition.
From Publishers Weekly
Part travelogue, part contemporary history, Richards's new work explores postcommunist Russia from the point of view of the Russian people directly affected by one of the 20th century's most defining sociopolitical events, the collapse of the U.S.S.R. Recounting her travels in Russia from 1992 to 2008, Richards, who wrote the PEN/Time-Life Award–winning Epics of Everyday Life, focuses on the country's forgotten provinces and the lives of her friends--the monastic, poetic journalist Anna; the manic, wandering couple Natasha and Igor; entrepreneurial Misha and his serene beauty of a wife, Tatiana. As a writer Richards wears her heart on her sleeve, and her story is full of empathy, frustration, and admiration as she observes her friends going through the roller-coaster of emotions, from hope to despair. And while glimpses into the lives of Russia's common folk are interesting, the real gems Richards uncovers are about the parts of the Russian society and mindset that remained hidden from Western eyes for nearly a century. Whether she is discovering a town said to be frequented by UFOs, exploring Russia's development of parapsychological weapons, or visiting a lab where "communication with the divine" is studied, Richards is constantly exposing a mystical and religious side of Russia that flies in the face of Western rationalism. (Dec.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
What does it mean to be Russian after the fall of communism? This is the essential question Richards pursues in her long-gestating follow-up to Epics of Everyday Life (1990). From 1992 to 2008, Richards made numerous forays into the Russian hinterlands and now provides a fascinating glimpse into provincial towns previously closed to foreigners. Sweeping political and societal change, from the chaos of the Yeltsin years to the autocracy of the Putin regime, are viewed through the eyes of the ordinary Russians Richards befriends in her travels. There’s Anna, the idealistic journalist; restless Igor and mercurial Natasha; Misha, the shrewd entrepreneur, and Tatiana, his beatific wife. While Richards adroitly captures the despair and optimism of a people struggling to define the meaning of freedom, as a guide she’s slightly scattershot, losing sight of her primary subjects while flitting from one tangent (faith healers) to another (fringe cults). She’s at her best when chronicling the progress and setbacks of her friends, people once unknowable to Westerners but now shown to share the same ever-present uncertainty about the future. --Patty Wetli
Description:
After the fall of communism, Russia was in a state of shock. The sudden and dramatic change left many people adrift and uncertain—but also full of a tentative but tenacious hope. Returning again and again to the provincial hinterlands of this rapidly evolving country from 1992 to 2008, Susan Richards struck up some extraordinary friendships with people in the middle of this historical drama. Anna, a questing journalist, struggles to express her passionate spirituality within the rules of the new society. Natasha, a restless spirit, has relocated from Siberia in a bid to escape the demands of her upper-class family and her own mysterious demons. Tatiana and Misha, whose business empire has blossomed from the ashes of the Soviet Union, seem, despite their luxury, uneasy in this new world. Richards watches them grow and change, their fortunes rise and fall, their hopes soar and crash.
Through their stories and her own experiences, Susan Richards demonstrates how in Russia, the past and the present cannot be separated. She meets scientists convinced of the existence of UFOs and mind-control warfare. She visits a cult based on working the land and a tiny civilization founded on the practices of traditional Russian Orthodoxy. Gangsters, dreamers, artists, healers, all are wondering in their own ways, “Who are we now if we’re not communist? What does it mean to be Russian?” This remarkable history of contemporary Russia holds a mirror up to a forgotten people. Lost and Found in Russia is a magical and unforgettable portrait of a society in transition.
From Publishers Weekly
Part travelogue, part contemporary history, Richards's new work explores postcommunist Russia from the point of view of the Russian people directly affected by one of the 20th century's most defining sociopolitical events, the collapse of the U.S.S.R. Recounting her travels in Russia from 1992 to 2008, Richards, who wrote the PEN/Time-Life Award–winning Epics of Everyday Life, focuses on the country's forgotten provinces and the lives of her friends--the monastic, poetic journalist Anna; the manic, wandering couple Natasha and Igor; entrepreneurial Misha and his serene beauty of a wife, Tatiana. As a writer Richards wears her heart on her sleeve, and her story is full of empathy, frustration, and admiration as she observes her friends going through the roller-coaster of emotions, from hope to despair. And while glimpses into the lives of Russia's common folk are interesting, the real gems Richards uncovers are about the parts of the Russian society and mindset that remained hidden from Western eyes for nearly a century. Whether she is discovering a town said to be frequented by UFOs, exploring Russia's development of parapsychological weapons, or visiting a lab where "communication with the divine" is studied, Richards is constantly exposing a mystical and religious side of Russia that flies in the face of Western rationalism. (Dec.)
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
What does it mean to be Russian after the fall of communism? This is the essential question Richards pursues in her long-gestating follow-up to Epics of Everyday Life (1990). From 1992 to 2008, Richards made numerous forays into the Russian hinterlands and now provides a fascinating glimpse into provincial towns previously closed to foreigners. Sweeping political and societal change, from the chaos of the Yeltsin years to the autocracy of the Putin regime, are viewed through the eyes of the ordinary Russians Richards befriends in her travels. There’s Anna, the idealistic journalist; restless Igor and mercurial Natasha; Misha, the shrewd entrepreneur, and Tatiana, his beatific wife. While Richards adroitly captures the despair and optimism of a people struggling to define the meaning of freedom, as a guide she’s slightly scattershot, losing sight of her primary subjects while flitting from one tangent (faith healers) to another (fringe cults). She’s at her best when chronicling the progress and setbacks of her friends, people once unknowable to Westerners but now shown to share the same ever-present uncertainty about the future. --Patty Wetli