The Invention of Russia: The Journey from Gorbachev's Freedom to Putin's War

Great history of the end of Soviet era, Yeltsin and the rise of Putin. Author includes many engrossing details, well-written. Glad I was exposed to a review of this work. Highly recommended.

A useful book but heavy on the media during this complex time of turmoil in Russia, This is understandable given the author's media background. Still, well worth reading.

An absorbing and very readable account of these extraordinary events.

Excellent insight into how the makers of perestroika laid the way for what came later, and not always in a good way.

Ostrovsky mastery of English routinely expressed on the pages of the Economist, his background in Russian culture and his congenial storytelling of how Russia made itself through the events of the past 40 years, makes the book a balanced report of "why", not just "what".

Lots of info and historical data but in a very readable style. Having spent a couple years in Armenia recently as a volunteer, it is easy to see how Russia can create "their image" to those in the region with very little facts. Reminds me of two sad chapters in our country: 1) the blind loyalty of parents to the Catholic Church despite the abuse of their children (as the movie "Spotlight" portrayed) and 2) the phenomena of Trump's ability to garner support by appealing to wounded national pride "Let's Make America Great Again." Putin has done the same thing. After taking the readers through the "trials and tribulations" of the Perestroika period following the collapse of the USSR, the author makes an very interesting contrast between Russia and China. Russia attempted to create a change in ideology from fear to personal freedom and failed because of the weakness in the economy. China on the other hand maintained the same controls as earlier but just concentrated on fixing the economy and it worked.

Arkady Ostrovsky delivers a fascinating chronicle of the last 25 years of Russian history. His underlying hypothesis is that, in postmodernity, it is media-constructed image and message by which society is governed, rather than through realities of implemented social and economic policy. He shows convincingly that this is true of Russia, and was true of the Soviet Union, but he doesn’t ask whether it is uniquely true of Russia, and if so, why.The Machiavellian machinations of the political and media elite play out in other societies, but totally dominate Russian society, because of the compliance of the wider population. The reason for this is that Russia retains strong elements of feudalism in its social structures. People expect to obey. Vertical authority typifies industry as well as politics. Russia’s social structures are thereby rendered dysfunctional, the totality adding up to less than the sum of the parts. Individuals are intelligent and capable, but disabled and unrepresented in the social structure. Cynicism rules : Russians trust neither their doctor, judge, lecturer, policeman, never mind their government or the media.Ostrovsky’s postmodern hypothesis also has to reckon with the logic and content of modernity’s logic and reality. The media-government circus ultimately has to answer for the living conditions it delivers to the people. Now that very low oil prices and sanctions are beginning to hit upper middle class incomes, the intelligentsia, who have been bought off into supine silence for too long, may at last decide to take their country back into their own intelligent and capable hands. We can only hope that they do.

The Invention of Russia is a clear explanation of the fall of the Soviet Union and the rise of Putin. It shows the extent to which reality is constructed by shared language and context, and how that context can be guided by those in control of the media. Excellent and a useful tool for framing the current American media environment.