Russia Starts Here: Real Lives in the Ruins of Empire

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'A different level of insight to anything Ive read for a long time about Russia.' - Sophy Roberts, author of The Lost Pianos of Siberia

'Exquisitely observed.. Full of empathy, Amos refuses easy stereotypes.' - Tom Parfitt, author of High Caucasus

'Truly kaleidoscopic and unique in its reach, this is a superbly written and unusual book' - Caroline Eden, author of Cold Kitchen

Returning to an overlooked region on the edge of Russia, Howard Amos sets out on a quest to understand the country he once called home.

On Russias European borderlands, people live their lives among the ruins of successive empires. Pskov, an old Slavic land of forgotten stories and faded waysides, has weathered the tides of history. Once a thriving nexus of trade and cultural exchange, today it is one of the poorest and most rapidly depopulating places of this vast nation. To understand the darkness that has captured Russia, Howard Amos journeys through a landscape of small towns, re-wilding fields and dilapidated churches.

This is a lyrical portrait of Russia where it meets NATO and the EU a place of frontiers and boundaries that reveals unfamiliar and uncomfortable truths. In a country where history has been erased, manipulated and marginalised, the voices Howard Amos spotlights are a powerful antidote against forgetting.

From the last inhabitants of a dying village to the long-term residents of a psychiatric hospital and a museum curator fighting local opposition to chronicle Pskovs forgotten Jewish heritage, Howard Amos uncovers compelling stories that are shaped by violence, tragedy and loss. He also encounters some of the powerful men who have loomed over Pskov leaving a troubling legacy in their wake, from far-right politicians to Putin's personal priest.

Reviews

Armed with years of firsthand experience and knowledge, Howard Amos draws a compelling and unsparing account of the lives of many ordinary, and extraordinary, Russians, delivering their stories of disillusionment, hope, love, and memories in an unflinching style laced with both cynicism and empathy. Truly kaleidoscopic and unique in its reach, this is a superbly written and unusual book that is sometimes difficult to read but is ultimately absolutely unforgettable. -- Caroline Eden, author of 'Cold Kitchen'
An exquisitely observed and subtle portrait of a key region of Russia which throws light on the character of the country as a whole. Here are the roots of autocracy and war, but also of heroic resistance, selflessness and survival. Full of empathy, Amos refuses easy stereotypes. This is a penetrating study which confronts the violence, manipulation and injustice at the heart of modern Russia while brimming with humanity and insight. -- Tom Parfitt, author of 'High Caucasus'
In Russia Starts Here, Howard Amos shows how the lesser-travelled region of Pskov is not only a bulwark against Europe, but in some ways the heartland of Russia: domain of Putin's personal priest and Alexander Pushkin's ancestral seat. It is a beautifully observed, melancholy and humanising travelogue that recalls the work of Anna Funder, transported to a land of crumbling edifices where almost-forgotten history weighs heavily on the living. - Alex Christofi, author of 'Dostoevsky in Love'
A work of exceptional reportage. Every encounter is woven with humanity, lyricism and insight into ordinary lives. This kind of nuance is rare. So is a story from border territory as relevant as this in the present, past and future. A different level of insight to anything Ive read for a long time about Russia. - Sophy Roberts, author of 'The Lost Pianos of Siberia'
Howard Amos has looked hard at the Russia that everyone else ignores. The stories he tells are elegiac, strange, and just a bit heart-breaking. - Oliver Bullough, author of 'Moneyland'
By fixing his focus onto one region of Russia Amos reflects the vast caste of Russias relentless nightmares - Peter Pomerantsev, author of 'This is Not Propaganda: Adventures in the War Against Reality'
Full of empathy and adventure, this book brings us to a vast, marshy land in the very center of the European continent. This is one of the least known parts of the earth, the heart of our new darkness. With their dying crafts, false cults and insane chiefs, its people are still smiling and hospitable. It is better to be where Russia starts than where it ends. - Alexander Etkind, Chair of Russia-Europe relations at the European University Institute and author of 'Russia Against Modernity'
This timely book is a fascinating and personal journey through the tragedy of post-Soviet Russia; wise, perceptive and humane. - Catherine Merridale, author of 'Red Fortress: The Secret Heart of Russia's History' and 'Lenin on the Train'

Author Bio

Howard Amos is a writer and journalist, who has been published by outlets including The Guardian, Newsweek, Foreign Policy, The Associated Press and The New Republic. Raised in London, he spent a year living in Russias Pskov Region before working for almost a decade as a correspondent in Moscow. He left Russia in the days after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and, based out of Armenia, did a year-long stint as editor-in-chief of The Moscow Times in exile. He now lives in Edinburgh.