Kremlin Rising: Vladimir Putin's Russia and the End of Revolution - Hardcover

Baker, Peter; Glasser, Susan

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0743264312 ISBN 13: 9780743264310

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd, 2005

Synopsis

With the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia launched itself on a fitful transition to western style democracy. But with Vladimir Putin at the helm, the promise has vanished. KREMLIN RISING is the first book to go behind the scenes and reveal the secret history of 'Project Putin', the plot to seize back power in the Kremlin. After four years as Moscow Bureau Chiefs for The Washington Post, Susan Glasser and Peter Baker now document the methodical campaign to reverse the post-Soviet revolution and transform Russia back into an authoritarian state as Putin seized control over Russian television, jailed political rivals, cancelled elections and waged a brutal war in Chechnya against separatists and civilians alike. This gripping report takes readers inside the key events of Putin's rise to power - from its mysterious origins through the Moscow theatre siege of 2002 to the horrific slaughter of Beslan's schoolchildren in 2004. Filled with personal stories and groundbreaking reporting, the book features accounts from frightened army deserters, an imprisoned oil billionaire, a trendy Moscow restaurant king, a reluctant underwear salesman, and even George W. Bush, who looked into Putin's soul only to realize belatedly that his new friend was no democrat. With gripping, page-turning narrative, KREMLIN RISING opens a window on a country on the brink, where behind the gleaming new shopping malls the dream of western democracy is slowly disintegrating.

About this title

Review

"A superb portrait of Putin's Russia by two reporters with an eye for the telling detail, an ear for the subtext of Russian life, and balanced, probing judgments about one of the most important dramas of our time." --Strobe Talbott, President, Brookings Institution "This devastating indictment of Vladimir Putin will remove the blinders from anyone who stills sees post-communist Russia as moving toward democracy. Baker and Glasser trace Putin's moves to turn back the revolution and restore authoritarian rule. Most distressingly, they claim he has the support of Russia's majority who prefer firm control to chaos. Using lies and various forms of manipulation, Putin has gone after all sources of opposition - the independent media, local governors, national legislators and the oligarchs who helped his rise to power. Dissidents who once fought Soviet power have been marginalized in their efforts to call attention to these excesses and to the tens of thousands of casualties of the war against Chechnya. This is compelling reading, a timely and important book." --Jeri Laber, a founder of Human Rights Watch, author of "The Courage of Strangers: Coming of Age with the Human Rights Movement." "Peter Baker and Susan Glasser have achieved something very unusual: They have given clarity and coherence to the confusing and contradictory story of Putin's Russia. Cutting through propaganda and conventional wisdom, they examine everything from terrorism to pop music in order to paint an uncannily precise portrait of contemporary Russian society." -- Anne Applebaum, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Gulag: A History" "The latest chapter in the epic story of Russia is superbly told in "Kremlin Rising." Baker and Glasser's assessment of Vladimir Putin's leadership is especially vivid and scathing in its portrayal of his antidemocratic instincts." -- Peter Osnos, publisher and CEO of PublicAffairs Books and former "Washington Post" Moscow correspondent "Here is the first great book on the new Russia, as fresh as this morning's headlines and great fun to read. Baker and Glasser have cracked the code -- they explain Putin's Russia in terms any intelligent reader can understand. It is a grim story, told in vivid detail with great narrative skill. If Vladimir Putin uses his newly acquired English-language skills to read this book, he won't like it. But readers curious about what has happened to the country we once considered our most important rival won't want to put it down." -- Robert G. Kaiser, author of "Russia: The People and the Power" and "Why Gorbachev Happened" "A bombshell of a book which makes clear why Putin's regime -- though successful in conning Bush -- does not have a bright future." -- Zbigniew Brzezinski, national security adviser to President Carter

Edition details

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0743264312
• ISBN 13: 9780743264310
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 464