Alexei Ivanov The gold of the rebellion One of the best examples of the contemporary Russian writers, he has won numerous prizes in Russia, among others has been nominated three times for the National Bestseller prize, but to my knowledge has not been translated into English. His two, arguably best novels ”The heart of Parma” and ”The gold of the rebellion” both take place in the past of Siberia, but are separated by a couple of hundred years. The language is wonderfully juicy and rich and the story keeps you guessing until the very end. The books are somewhat difficult to categorize. They both are historic fiction, full of adventure and breathtaking turns of the storytelling, and yet they are also serious reads, filled with historical details, carefully researched and yet remarkably fresh in language. You literally swallow the books, begging that they will never end, and then come back for more… His other books, like ”Geographer who drunk away a globe”, mostly take place in contemporary Russia. They are great books, as well, but perhaps they are somewhat more culture-specific and might feel closer to a Russian heart than to a Western mind. vvr -

Yevgeny Zamyatin We It pre-empts the likes of Brave New World by Aldous Huxley and Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. Although written in 1920, it was banned in Russia until 1989. It contains positive female roles, which no other early 20th century dystopia does. It is genuinely original and enjoyable to read. It is rumoured that Zamyatin suffered from Synaesthesia, hence the strong, yet clever, use of colours in the novel. Paul Wilks Natasha Randall

Yuri Buida The Prussian Bride Oliver Ready

Adam Roberts Yellow Blue Tibia It's by a British author, but does have the benefit of being one of the most interesting science fiction works. Set in Russia and Ukraine, appearances from Stalin, aliens, Chernobyl, and Scientologists move the plot along nicely. These accompany the broader (meta)-question of what science fiction actually is, and how much of the experiences of narrator-cum-author Skvorecky actually occurred. Recommended for anyone who enjoys the work of the great Victor Pelevin. Kwill none

Varlam Shalamov Kolyma Tales The unmissable narrative of the Gulag. Avoiding Solzhenitsyn's moral raging, these are short vignettes - sometimes just 2-3 pages long - depicting life in the USSR's most notorious camps in the Arctic Circle, the so-called "Road Of Death". In a strange way they remind me of Levi's THE PERIODIC TABLE. They were written on paper scraps and smuggled out of the Gulag. Not for the queasy - the details spare you nothing, yet the author tells only the story, leaving the reader to judge if they wish to. Senesino John Glad

Mikhail Bulgakov The Master and Margarita One of the most genuinely dizzying, moving, baffling and overwhelming reads one can experience. Twelve years in the writing (1928-'40), another 33 years before it was published in full (1973), it is truly a dramatic assemblage to be put alongside the great rambling psychological epics such as Moby Dick and The Odyssey. The Master and Margarita sees a narrative exquisitely draped around persons, buildings, streets, and dream-space, linking them all in a hyper-real chain of events that defy history and turn the intangible on it's head so that the readers own journey becomes the very essence of the book. Al Greenall Richard Pevear & Larissa Volokhonsky

Mikhail Bulgakov The Master and Margarita It's one of the key texts for the Soviet Union under Stalin. mfzh Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky

Tolstoy I think Tolstoy is a beautiful writer. His evocative style is one that thoroughly rivets my imagination and stirs my senses. Although at times, his prolific prose style can be termed unnecessary, as in the case of 'War and Peace', I have found since exploring deeper into Tolstoy's work, in particular 'Anna Karenina', that Tolstoy was an extremely insightful writer. Furthermore, after watching the recent BBC documentary on Tolstoy, his personal life seems as tumultuous as those of his characters. missmkl

Venedikt Yerofeev Moscow Stations Dante's Inferno transposed (in miniature) to Brezhnev-era Russia, from the perspective of a train-riding serious drinker. Metatextual, witty, intelligent, heartwarming, tragic, even religious. Sharp, beautfiul, unforgettable, prose that references everything from the Song of Solomon to Chekhov. Famous (or infamous) by the way for its "cocktail recipes", apparently based on things that homeless alcoholics really drank or drink (Sadko the Wealthy Guest Shampoo). Observations like "the problem with Russia today is that nobody can quote Pushkin, but everyone knows how to distill shoe polish" hint at the depth of despair Yerofeev records and feels. And of course there is no happy ending in this world without God or transcendance that is not provided by alcohol. "Eat less, and drink more, so asnot to be a superficial atheist" indeed. Mulrine's translation (the third to be published in English) carries across the poetry and intensity of the original text extremely well, and rather more so than the two earlier English translations. Dominic H Stephen Mulrine

Vasily Grossman A writer at war Grossman was a journalist with the Red Army during WW2; this is a compendium of his wartime articles and notes edited by Anthony Beevor. Though his patriotic duty- and the censors- give his official reports a certain slant, Grossman was always alert to this and his private notes reveal a far more complex response to what he was witnessing. The scale of events and Grossman's presence at nearly every major battle on the Eastern Front alone make this an historically essential document; Grossman's writing skills and his overwhelming sense of humanity amidst mind-numbing brutality makes it one of the 20th century's essential works of literature. nilpferd Luba Vinogradova

Kirill Yeskov The Last Ringbearer Looks at the War of the Ring from the other side, as a heroic and doomed struggle of an encircled Mordor that values science and education, against the imperialism, feudalism, brutal ignorance, and racism of Gondor and Rohan - and of their puppet-masters in the West. Sauron's army was the only multi-racial, even multi-species (!) army on Middle Earth. We can only dream of such progressivism even today. History is written by the victors, hence the propaganda tract known as Lord of the Rings by the apologist for Western chauvinism Tolkien. The real story needs to become more widely known. Sublime Oblivion Yisroel Markov

Irina Denezhkina Give Me: Songs for Lovers This collection of short stories paints a picture of modern Russia that feels very real and arresting. It unflinchingly portrays the lives of urban Russian teenagers, offering subjective snapshots of the teenage psyche in a landscape of vast grey housing estates. The writing is sparse but also has feeling and authenticity. lauramccutcheon Andrew Bromfield

Andrei Platonov Foundation Pit

Mikhail Lermontov A Hero of Our Time The Russian anti-hero at his Byronic best. A book that stays with you. GraceAndreacchi Natasha Randall

Starobinets Anna Ubezhishche 3/9 The fairy-tail novel presents folk Russia as if russian pagan myths were alive. In this horror fairy-tale contemporary Russia is governed by occult powers. The central character of the novel is a young mother searching her lost child in a magic wood. lapusta

Anna Starobinets Asylum 3/9 this fantasy novel presents folk Russia. Contemporary Russia is governed by occult powers known from russian fairy tales. A young mother is searching her lost son in dangerous magic wood while history of mankind is coming to an end. lola

Алиса Ганиева (Гулла Хирачев) "Салам тебе, Далгат!" It's modern and it's great!!! Vasily Popuganov n/a

Dmitry Bykov Okudzhava Okudzhava was a great poet of the second half XX century. In this book I find a first description of intelegentzia and discussion about main streams inside intelegentzia in XX century geophoto

Terehov Kamenny Most (Stone Bridge) Great russian roman. geophoto

Dmitry Bykov Pasternak Biography of nobel prize author Boris Pasternak. Very good investigation. Life of artist in the totalitarian country. geophoto

Victor Nikitin Исчезнут, как птицы - vampirov1970 -