I read this book about two or even three years ago. I remember it well. I've been trying to find more books by Ekaterina Sedia since reading "The Secret History of Moscow" but so far I have been out of luck. When I find a book it isn't available for delivery to my location. I would especially like to read "The Alchemy of Stone" which is about history and gargoyles. I have a long standing interest in gargoyles and grotesques and the old buildings they are part of.

Ekaterina Sedia writes fiction about Russian history, legend and lore.

She writes urban fantasy mingled with a fairy tale for modern readers. Her writing is unclear in that good way that pulls you into the story and makes you think about what you are reading, think about how it all fits together and where it is all going. I love a book that assumes I have a brain!

The Secret History of Moscow is...

• a little creepy but not actually scary
• about crows and ravens stealing people away
• about a secret, underground sort of world
• are you really not yet tempted to read the book?

Reading "The Secret History of Moscow" made me wish I had paid more attention to what I do know about Russian history. I don't know a lot but I did think I had absorbed or researched enough to find my way around. I was not as clever as I thought. As I read I found out about individual people and events and I wrote notes to find out more. But, the book is not a dry historical tome. There is life in the history she writes. There is romance, mystery and seduction in her story.

This is not the standard story you read from standard romance or fantasy or science fiction writers coming from the US. You will find a difference in the writing style and the way the story is told too. But, we need some shaking up and the chance to explore another culture through it's works of fiction. You can read about another country, another culture but you can't see between the cracks, read the minds, hearts and souls of the people until you wander past the non-fiction section and read about more than the facts and statics written for tourists.

I'm not going to rehash the story. You can read the preview and reviews on Amazon. But don't read too much there. Read the book for yourself and form your own fresh opinions and ideas.

Savour the adventure and mystery of a culture you may never see from this depth and perspective again.

Postcard "Forgotten Moscow"

I don't have a link for this. It was posted as a web course which is now gone.

Russian Culture By Lindsay Kosarev

Introduction

Russia is not something you understand with your mind. To have any understanding of the logic or culture of Russia, you need to feel her soul, her history, and her people.

Living the Russian Way is designed to give the student a glimpse at a completely different life perspective and way of thinking. I am not focused on historical or political debates, as many Russians are not. Part of Russian thinking is that these things cannot really be answered. Plus, it is better to make such discussions in the privacy of your home with a couple of good friends and a bottle of something intoxicating.

In other culture classes there is a focus in polite and “cultural” Russian culture, but this not such a course. I will not be talking about the Bolshoi Theater or traditional singing, but rather real people and living culture. This course will be challenging, not necessarily in the material, but it will challenge your perceptions about life. This challenge is the point behind cultural adaption. It will be challenging because you will begin to enter into and try to feel out the elusive and mysterious Russian soul. …more

I'm a long time fan of the Russian Matryoshka nesting doll. The Russian doll sets appeal to me as something feminine, historical and cultural. They're pretty too. I've found all sorts of doll sets in various themes and mediums - not just the standard wooden doll any more.

I bought my first Matryoshka doll at the Canadian National Exhibition. I had wanted one for years, since the first time I noticed them at the CNE (or The Ex, as we also called it).

I didn't know anything about the Russian dolls then, not even the right name for them. A lot of people don't know them by anything more than "that Russian doll set". The proper name is Matryoshka (other spellings - Matroishka and Matreshka). They are also called nesting dolls or stacking dolls.

I had seen them here and there and thought they were pretty, but more than that, I saw the history and the legacy to them. I have always been a history fan. Those Russian dolls were far too well known and wide spread to be something without a great history to them.

The First Russian Nesting Doll

The first doll set was carved in 1890 by Vasily Zvyozdochkin from a design by Sergey Malyutin (a folk crafts painter). The doll set was painted by Malyutin, eight dolls staring with a girl in a traditional dress holding a rooster. The inner dolls were girls and a boy, the smallest was a baby.

Zvyozdochkin and Malyutin were inspired by a Japanese made doll. In turn, I read the Japanese say this doll was inspired by a Russian monk originally.

Traditional Matryoshka dolls have the theme with women and girls in traditional Russian dress. However, new dolls can have any random theme under the sun. Try looking up nesting dolls and anything other theme or idea and see what you find. Chances are there will be something in any theme for anyone who wants them.

I'm more of a traditional type. I like the history and prettiness of the doll in her Russian dress/ costume. Especially those with flowers painted on the skirts. But, I do have a weakness for the winter set too. All blue and white colours with snowflakes instead of flowers.

The first Matryoshka doll set are displayed in the Museum of Toys in Russia.

I like retro, vintage, old things. Choosing to preserve or repurpose is her dilemma - can't change your mind once started.

The Russian dolls (also called Russian Nesting Dolls) are called Matroschka, Matryoshka and матрёшка. As a kid I would see these Russian dolls when we went to the Canadian National Exhibition in downtown Toronto at the end of each Summer. I always wanted one. They were exotic, something from a country I heard so many different stories about. They were also so pretty, some were cute and some were so intricately painted they were things of real beauty.

I asked my Mother to buy me one. She told me to wait and see if I still wanted one next year and then I could buy one myself. This is still excellent advice for anything you want, it sure does cut down on my impulse spending when I am out shopping around. (Not that I always follow that rule, of course).

It took me a few years before I had the money to spend on a Russian doll. I couldn’t get one of those really big ones with endless dolls nested inside. But, I did get one that made me happy. She has five dolls, including the tiny baby in the middle. She is a traditional looking Russian doll cause when I took the time to look and remember the very first Russian dolls I had wanted this one seemed to be the most like the very one I had wished for all that time ago. I think she’s pretty. Of course, I have seen cuter dolls since then. But, I am happy to have the doll that I have.