The Russian's World

The Russian's World: Life and Language

By Genevra Gerhart

Third edition, 2001

ISBN: 0893572934
420 pages, 207 illustrations and charts
$34.95 Click for Order Form

Slavica Publishers, Indiana University
2611 E. 10th St., Bloomington, Indiana 47408-2603 USA
Ordering information on http://www.slavica.com
Email: slavica@indiana.edu
Telephone toll free: 1-877-752-8422

Written in English, with Russian sub-titles (so to speak), this book is a description of Russian common knowledge for the non-Russian. Almost all illustrative passages in Russian are translated. The assumption is that the reader does not know Russian, but familiarity with the alphabet would certainly help. Advanced students of the language will understand more allusions but beginners will not have missed the essence.

What travelers, especially those intending long-term stays, need to know, about proprieties, food, trains, weather, the church, for example.
What business people must know, especially about appropriate and desirable behavior, and about the expectations of the society they may be dealing with.
What students want to know about how language relates to all of life's aspects. The book helps to involve the student in learning Russian by appealing to interests.

The Table of Contents includes six new chapters, plus accented maps of Russia and the world, and indexes in Russian and English. Suggestions for Classroom Use may be helpful. The Author gives some personal history. And Sample Passages demonstrate the intent and method. The Reviews page contains reviews by Frederick Starr in the New York Times, John Kachur on the AATSEEL website book review page, and Laszlo Dienes in Slavic and East European Journal, and comments by A. Jameson in Rusistika.

And of course the AATSEEL 1996 Special Achievement Award...