85 Days in Slavyansk, Aleksandr Zhuchkovsky (Translated and self-published by Peter Nimitz, 2022). As loyal citizens of the American Empire we are legally mandated to have the historical memory of goldfish. So it came as a surprise to many of us when earlier this year the Ukraine exploded into violent conflict. Why, we wondered, had that awful Mr. Vladimir Vladimirovich woken up one morning and decided to invade his neighbor? How terrifying that the leader of a nuclear power could behave in a such a totally random and irrational manner!
Going back to read every review from the start; I'm impressed that you've gone back to add hyperlinks to future book reviews where it's warranted.
Fascinatingly, since this review was published, Strelkov himself has been sentenced to a prison term for his harsh criticism of the Russian war effort. This kind of harsh criticism from the nationalist pro-war right seems common, and in the last year we also saw Prigozhin's failed coup get remarkably far before stopping. And yet, despite the biggest nationalists being angry sideline critics, and despite most Russians apparently not being too enthusiastic about the war, and despite both major losses and allegedly low morale in the ranks, the Russian war effort grinds on and even seems close to winning.
Going back to read every review from the start; I'm impressed that you've gone back to add hyperlinks to future book reviews where it's warranted.
Fascinatingly, since this review was published, Strelkov himself has been sentenced to a prison term for his harsh criticism of the Russian war effort. This kind of harsh criticism from the nationalist pro-war right seems common, and in the last year we also saw Prigozhin's failed coup get remarkably far before stopping. And yet, despite the biggest nationalists being angry sideline critics, and despite most Russians apparently not being too enthusiastic about the war, and despite both major losses and allegedly low morale in the ranks, the Russian war effort grinds on and even seems close to winning.
Strange country.