A Short History of Russia
How the World's Largest Country Invented Itself, from the Pagans to Putin
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $20.97
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Mark Galeotti
-
Written by:
-
Mark Galeotti
About this listen
A Library Journal 2020 Title to Watch
Russia’s epic and dramatic history told in an accessible, lively, and short form, from Ivan the Terrible to Vladimir Putin via Catherine the Great, the Russian Revolution and the fall of the USSR.
Russia is a country with no natural borders, no single ethnic group, no true central identity. At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it has been subject to invasion by outsiders, from Vikings to Mongols, from Napoleon’s French to Hitler’s Germans. In order to forge an identity, it has mythologized its past to unite its people and to signal strength to outsiders.
In A Short History of Russia, Mark Galeotti explores the history of this fascinating, glorious, desperate, and exasperating country through two intertwined issues: the way successive influences from beyond its borders have shaped Russia and the way Russians came to terms with this influence, writing and rewriting their past to understand their present and try to influence their future. In turn, this self-invented history has come to affect not just their constant nation-building project, but also their relations with the world.
©2020 Mark Galeotti (P)2020 HarperCollins PublishersYou may also enjoy...
-
The Foundations of Western Civilization
- Written by: Thomas F. X. Noble, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Thomas F. X. Noble
- Length: 24 hrs and 51 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What is Western Civilization? According to Professor Noble, it is "much more than human and political geography," encompassing myriad forms of political and institutional structures - from monarchies to participatory republics - and its own traditions of political discourse. It involves choices about who gets to participate in any given society and the ways in which societies have resolved the tension between individual self-interest and the common good.
-
-
very protestant and narrow
- By Carole Oleniuk on 2018-12-12
Written by: Thomas F. X. Noble, and others
-
Conquistadores
- A New History of Spanish Discovery and Conquest
- Written by: Fernando Cervantes
- Narrated by: Luis Soto
- Length: 15 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Over the few short decades that followed Christopher Columbus' first landing in the Caribbean in 1492, Spain conquered the two most powerful civilizations of the Americas: the Aztecs of Mexico and the Incas of Peru. Hernán Cortés, Francisco Pizarro, and the other explorers and soldiers who took part in these expeditions dedicated their lives to seeking political and religious glory, helping to build an empire unlike any the world had ever seen. But centuries later, these conquistadors have become the stuff of nightmares.
-
-
Excellent overview of the conquistadors
- By James Burns on 2023-04-12
Written by: Fernando Cervantes
-
The Rise of Rome
- Written by: The Great Courses, Gregory S. Aldrete
- Narrated by: Gregory S. Aldrete
- Length: 12 hrs and 16 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Roman Republic is one of the most breathtaking civilizations in world history. Between roughly 500 BCE to the turn of the millennium, a modest city-state developed an innovative system of government and expanded into far-flung territories across Europe, Northern Africa, and the Middle East. This powerful civilization inspired America's founding fathers, gifted us a blueprint for amazing engineering innovations, left a vital trove of myths, and has inspired the human imagination for 2,000 years.
-
-
Great Audiobook
- By Matthew Yantha on 2018-09-12
Written by: The Great Courses, and others
-
The Stranger in the Lifeboat
- A Novel
- Written by: Mitch Albom
- Narrated by: Mitch Albom
- Length: 4 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Adrift in a raft after a deadly ship explosion, 10 people struggle for survival at sea. Three days pass. Short on water, food, and hope, they spot a man floating in the waves. They pull him in. “Thank the Lord we found you,” a passenger says. “I am the Lord,” the man whispers. So begins Mitch Albom’s most beguiling and inspiring novel yet.
-
-
wow! couldn't wait to see what happened in the end
- By Livia Grujich on 2021-11-09
Written by: Mitch Albom
-
Iron Kingdom
- The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600-1947
- Written by: Christopher Clark
- Narrated by: Shaun Grindell
- Length: 28 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the aftermath of World War II, Prussia - a centuries-old state pivotal to Europe's development - ceased to exist. In their eagerness to erase all traces of the Third Reich from the earth, the Allies believed that Prussia, the very embodiment of German militarism, had to be abolished. But as Christopher Clark reveals in this pioneering history, Prussia's legacy is far more complex.
-
-
Infuriating narrator can't say German names
- By Chris Shannon on 2018-12-12
Written by: Christopher Clark
-
Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945
- Written by: Tony Judt
- Narrated by: Ralph Cosham
- Length: 43 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Almost a decade in the making, this much-anticipated grand history of postwar Europe from one of the world’s most esteemed historians and intellectuals is a singular achievement. Postwar is the first modern history that covers all of Europe, both east and west, drawing on research in six languages to sweep readers through 34 nations and 60 years of political and cultural change—all in one integrated, enthralling narrative.
-
-
Good content; terrible narrator
- By Daly Close on 2020-01-30
Written by: Tony Judt
-
The Foundations of Western Civilization
- Written by: Thomas F. X. Noble, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Thomas F. X. Noble
- Length: 24 hrs and 51 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What is Western Civilization? According to Professor Noble, it is "much more than human and political geography," encompassing myriad forms of political and institutional structures - from monarchies to participatory republics - and its own traditions of political discourse. It involves choices about who gets to participate in any given society and the ways in which societies have resolved the tension between individual self-interest and the common good.
-
-
very protestant and narrow
- By Carole Oleniuk on 2018-12-12
Written by: Thomas F. X. Noble, and others
-
Conquistadores
- A New History of Spanish Discovery and Conquest
- Written by: Fernando Cervantes
- Narrated by: Luis Soto
- Length: 15 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Over the few short decades that followed Christopher Columbus' first landing in the Caribbean in 1492, Spain conquered the two most powerful civilizations of the Americas: the Aztecs of Mexico and the Incas of Peru. Hernán Cortés, Francisco Pizarro, and the other explorers and soldiers who took part in these expeditions dedicated their lives to seeking political and religious glory, helping to build an empire unlike any the world had ever seen. But centuries later, these conquistadors have become the stuff of nightmares.
-
-
Excellent overview of the conquistadors
- By James Burns on 2023-04-12
Written by: Fernando Cervantes
-
The Rise of Rome
- Written by: The Great Courses, Gregory S. Aldrete
- Narrated by: Gregory S. Aldrete
- Length: 12 hrs and 16 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Roman Republic is one of the most breathtaking civilizations in world history. Between roughly 500 BCE to the turn of the millennium, a modest city-state developed an innovative system of government and expanded into far-flung territories across Europe, Northern Africa, and the Middle East. This powerful civilization inspired America's founding fathers, gifted us a blueprint for amazing engineering innovations, left a vital trove of myths, and has inspired the human imagination for 2,000 years.
-
-
Great Audiobook
- By Matthew Yantha on 2018-09-12
Written by: The Great Courses, and others
-
The Stranger in the Lifeboat
- A Novel
- Written by: Mitch Albom
- Narrated by: Mitch Albom
- Length: 4 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Adrift in a raft after a deadly ship explosion, 10 people struggle for survival at sea. Three days pass. Short on water, food, and hope, they spot a man floating in the waves. They pull him in. “Thank the Lord we found you,” a passenger says. “I am the Lord,” the man whispers. So begins Mitch Albom’s most beguiling and inspiring novel yet.
-
-
wow! couldn't wait to see what happened in the end
- By Livia Grujich on 2021-11-09
Written by: Mitch Albom
-
Iron Kingdom
- The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600-1947
- Written by: Christopher Clark
- Narrated by: Shaun Grindell
- Length: 28 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the aftermath of World War II, Prussia - a centuries-old state pivotal to Europe's development - ceased to exist. In their eagerness to erase all traces of the Third Reich from the earth, the Allies believed that Prussia, the very embodiment of German militarism, had to be abolished. But as Christopher Clark reveals in this pioneering history, Prussia's legacy is far more complex.
-
-
Infuriating narrator can't say German names
- By Chris Shannon on 2018-12-12
Written by: Christopher Clark
-
Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945
- Written by: Tony Judt
- Narrated by: Ralph Cosham
- Length: 43 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Almost a decade in the making, this much-anticipated grand history of postwar Europe from one of the world’s most esteemed historians and intellectuals is a singular achievement. Postwar is the first modern history that covers all of Europe, both east and west, drawing on research in six languages to sweep readers through 34 nations and 60 years of political and cultural change—all in one integrated, enthralling narrative.
-
-
Good content; terrible narrator
- By Daly Close on 2020-01-30
Written by: Tony Judt
-
The Lost Van Gogh
- A Novel
- Written by: Jonathan Santlofer
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 7 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For years, there have been whispers that, before his death, Van Gogh completed a final self-portrait. Curators and art historians have savored this rumor, hoping it could illuminate some of the troubled artist's many secrets, but even they have to concede that the missing painting is likely lost forever. But when Luke Perrone, artist and great-grandson of the man who stole the Mona Lisa, and Alexis Verde, daughter of a notorious art thief, discover what may be the missing portrait, they are drawn into a most epic art puzzles.
Written by: Jonathan Santlofer
-
Les fleurs du mal
- Written by: Charles Baudelaire
- Narrated by: Michel Piccoli, Denis Lavant, Éric Caravaca, and others
- Length: 4 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"Le poète est semblable au prince des nuées / Qui hante la tempête et se rit de l'archer ; / Exilé sur le sol au milieu des huées, / Ses ailes de géant l'empêchent de marcher." (L'Albatros)
Written by: Charles Baudelaire
-
Conflict
- The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine
- Written by: David Petraeus, Andrew Roberts
- Narrated by: David Petraeus, Robert Fass
- Length: 18 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Two leading authorities—an acclaimed historian and the outstanding battlefield commander and strategist of our time—collaborate on a landmark examination of war since 1945. Conflict is both a sweeping history of the evolution of warfare up to Putin’s invasion of the Ukraine, and a penetrating analysis of what we must learn from the past—and anticipate in the future—in order to navigate an increasingly perilous world.
-
-
Super capture of the evolution of conflict
- By Allen Dillon on 2024-02-02
Written by: David Petraeus, and others
-
Tripping on Utopia
- Margaret Mead, the Cold War, and the Troubled Birth of Psychedelic Science
- Written by: Benjamin Breen
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 12 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A bold and brilliant revisionist take on the history of psychedelics in the twentieth century, illuminating how a culture of experimental drugs shaped the Cold War and the birth of Silicon Valley....
Written by: Benjamin Breen
-
The Story of Russia
- Written by: Orlando Figes
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Story of Russia is about how the Russians defined themselves―and repeatedly reinvented such definitions along the way. Moving from Russia’s agrarian beginnings in the first millennium to subsequent periods of monarchy, totalitarianism, and perestroika, all the way up to Vladimir Putin and his use of myths of Russian history to bolster his regime, celebrated historian Orlando Figes examines the ideas that have guided the country’s actions.
Written by: Orlando Figes
-
Putin's Wars
- From Chechnya to Ukraine
- Written by: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: David Sibley
- Length: 15 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Putin's Wars is a timely overview of the conflicts in which Russia has been involved since Vladimir Putin became prime minister and then president of Russia, from the First Chechen War to the two military incursions into Georgia, the annexation of Crimea and the eventual invasion of Ukraine itself. But it also looks more broadly at Putin's recreation of Russian military power and its expansion to include a range of new capabilities, from mercenaries to operatives in a relentless information war against Western powers.
Written by: Mark Galeotti
-
The Perfectionists
- How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World
- Written by: Simon Winchester
- Narrated by: Simon Winchester
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The New York Times best-selling author traces the development of technology from the Industrial Age to the Digital Age to explore the single component crucial to advancement - precision - in a superb history that is both an homage and a warning for our future.
-
-
Best Listen of my Audible career to date
- By Ed Chinaski on 2021-01-19
Written by: Simon Winchester
-
L'Odyssée
- Written by: Homère
- Narrated by: Guy Moign
- Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
De toutes les traductions françaises connues, la plus vivante, la plus respectueuse des textes primitifs mais aussi la plus originale est sans conteste celle de Victor Bérard. Elle est le résultat d'une vie de recherche et est, à ce jour, la référence ultime. Contrairement à l'habituelle séparation en 24 chants, Victor Bérard a essayé d'en rétablir la forme originelle en créant des divisions par épisodes et groupe d'épisodes. Cette méthode a permis de rétablir l'ordre chronologique de l'histoire perdue au cours des siècles.
Written by: Homère
-
The Lives of Brian
- A Memoir
- Written by: Brian Johnson
- Narrated by: Brian Johnson
- Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Brian Johnson’s memoir from growing up in a small town to starting his own band to ultimately replacing Bon Scott, the lead singer of one of the world biggest rock acts, AC/DC. They would record their first album together, the iconic Back in Black, which would become the biggest selling rock album of all time.
-
-
Things I didn’t know about is I didn’t know about Brian Johnson
- By Anonymous User on 2023-01-30
Written by: Brian Johnson
-
The Satanic Verses
- Written by: Salman Rushdie
- Narrated by: Sam Dastor
- Length: 21 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Inextricably linked with the fatwa called against its author in the wake of the novel’s publication, The Satanic Verses is, beyond that, a rich showcase for Salman Rushdie’s comic sensibilities, cultural observations, and unparalleled mastery of language. The book begins with two Indians plummeting from the sky after the explosion of their airliner, and proceeds through a series of metamorphoses, dreams and revelations.
-
-
My second go at this classic.
- By peter wing on 2018-11-24
Written by: Salman Rushdie
-
2034
- A Novel of the Next World War
- Written by: Elliot Ackerman, Admiral James Stavridis USN
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller, P.J. Ochlan, Vikas Adam, and others
- Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From two former military officers and award-winning authors comes a chillingly authentic geopolitical thriller that imagines a naval clash between the US and China in the South China Sea in 2034 - and the path from there to a nightmarish global conflagration.
-
-
A one-star book by a four-star admiral
- By Peter G on 2021-05-01
Written by: Elliot Ackerman, and others
-
Spies
- The Epic Intelligence War Between East and West
- Written by: Calder Walton
- Narrated by: Dugald Bruce-Lockhart
- Length: 20 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Spies is the history of the secret war that Russia and the West have been waging for a century. Espionage, sabotage, and subversion were the Kremlin’s means to equalize the imbalance of resources between the East and West before, during, and after the Cold War. There was nothing “unprecedented” about Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election. It was simply business as usual, new means used for old ends.
-
-
Fascinating history, disappointing epilogue
- By Anonymous User on 2024-04-07
Written by: Calder Walton
What listeners say about A Short History of Russia
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Chad
- 2022-12-31
Interesting
It is worth checking out. Great information, great reading. I will check out his other books.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- DJDQ
- 2023-03-07
Encompassing yet succinct
Found periods covered interesting and relevant. Although, prob Insufficient for those wanting to dive in and understand Putin era, especially recent years.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!