Rating: 
Summary: A Great Historical Read...Russian That Is.
Review: "Natasha's Dance" was a detailed, creative, vivid account of Russia's rich history. Beginning with Tsar Peter the Great, Orlando Figes illustrates how the Tsar established the first European style city in Russia. Along with the normal text of the Tsars and Tsarinas, military giants, intelligentsia, literary greats, artists, etc, Figes incorporates such hidden topics as the elites only speaking French not being able to even understand Russian, the many balls and operas given in private palace size estates, the connection between elite's children who were unfamiliar with their own parents clung to their nannies even as adults. If you are only interested in Soviet Russia (USSR), this is not for you. However, this is a must read for anyone interested in general Russian history.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Historical Read...Russian That Is.
Review: "Natasha's Dance" was a detailed, creative, vivid account of Russia's rich history. Beginning with Tsar Peter the Great, Orlando Figes illustrates how the Tsar established the first European style city in Russia. Along with the normal text of the Tsars and Tsarinas, military giants, intelligentsia, literary greats, artists, etc, Figes incorporates such hidden topics as the elites only speaking French not being able to even understand Russian, the many balls and operas given in private palace size estates, the connection between elite's children who were unfamiliar with their own parents clung to their nannies even as adults. If you are only interested in Soviet Russia (USSR), this is not for you. However, this is a must read for anyone interested in general Russian history.
Rating:
Summary: Like Chichikov's carriage, a wild ride through Russia.
Review: Although Figes takes the title from Natasha's dance in "War and Peace," he could have just as easily used Chichikov from "Dead Souls" as his vehicle, as he takes the reader along on a wild ride through Russia's rich cultural history. Figes explores his chapters thematically, exploring a compelling set of Russian ideas that revolve around the East-West duality that is so apparent in the works of great Russian artists, writers and musicians. Figes seems to be more at home when exploring the themes found in the great classical compositions, providing wonderful character sketches of composers such as Stravinsky, Prokofiev and Tchaikovsky.He also takes on virtually all of the major Russian novels of the past two centuries, starting with "Eugene Onegin," noting the inspirations and the thoughts that pervaded these works. He notes that it was Pushkin who gave Russia a literary voice, which it would never forsake, as each writer that succeeded him built on the language he had to a large part invented. Ultimately, we get Nabokov's thoughts on the subject as Figes covers the emigres in the concluding chapter. Nabokov imagined himself as a latter-day Pushkin, devoting a considerable amount of time to a translation and analysis of Pushkin's great literary work, before embarking on his own major works. Figes captures the mood and energy of the time, the tumultuous reign of the Tsars, their Tatar origins, their identification with Byzantine, the Decembrist revolt and the Bolshevik Revolution. He casts a light on some of the major figures of the time, such as Volkhonsky who defied the Tsar and was sentenced to Siberia. Rather than submit to the elements, Volkhonsky rose to become a people's hero, greatly inspiring the works of Pushkin and Tolstoy. He also takes in the artistic movement in Russia and how it was reflected through the writings of Tolstoy and others. How the social realism and symbolist painting of the 19th century transformed into a dynamic abstract art of the 20th century, richly inspired by folk images as seen in the work of Kandinsky and Chagall. Figes also treats the influence of the church on writers such as Gogol and Dostoevsky, and how they struggled to find salvation not only for themselves but for the nation through their writings. Figes states that Gogol imagined "Dead Souls" as a divine comedy, but the only part he ever finished was the first part, which has haunted Russian authors and scholars ever since in assessing the genius of Gogol. Chichikov and his carriage ride through the Russian countryside remains one of the most enduring images in Russian literature.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent overview of Russian culture and character
Review: Figes' book covers the history and development of Russian culture from the time of Peter the Great through the Brezhnev era. The chapters cover key themes: Russian peasants as emblems and repositories of "authentic" Russian-ness (in the eyes of the intelligentsia), the relationship between the European west and Asiatic east, the Soviet influence on culture and art, etc. The book is well-written and full of charming (and revealing) anecdotes that illustrate how the Russians viewed their own culture and national character. A must-read for those who enjoy intelligent, well-presented history.
Rating: 
Summary: Russia explained
Review: Figes' book goes beyond anything else I've read in the field of Russian history. It ties together many disparate elements -- the origin of the Matrioshka doll, the Holy Fool phenomenon, how peasants beat their wives, why "The Rite of Spring" caused a riot, and where Anna Akhmatova lived-- and gives them a coherence that lead me to many "aha" moments when considering what I knew about Russia prior to reading the book, and how I could now interpret my knowledge. It is at once disheartening to realize what was lost in the 1917 revolution, and encouraging to know what endures as part of the famous Russian soul. This is a book that academics and the lay reader will love equally. The only reason I held back a star is that I missed having a good map of the region included with the book, and I thought the photos and other illustrations were inadequate considering the scope of the material. Both omissions probably the publisher's fault.
Rating:
Summary: With Figes you can't go wrong
Review: From the first intriguing segue from title to text, Figes draws the reader into a compelling over-view of Russia's rich culture, its diversities and its cruelties. An example of sound scholarship, historical perspective, and blessedly fine writing style, Natasha's Dance gives the reader a profound vision of the complex artistic production of this struggling country. As Figes points out, not only do artists manage to continue their creative work during its troubled history, but seem almost to rise above and thrive on hardship. Only a writer and scholar of true merit could swim through the often murky, often shimmering centuries of Russian thought and its productive Godchild, art.
Rating: 
Summary: Why Rachel Polonsky is right
Review: Here are some interesting facts. Russia was so backward in 1682 that the Moscow printing press has published exactly three non-religious works in the past 120 years. And there was no Russian translation of the Bible until the 1870s. One of Isaiah Berlin's uncles was tortured as part of "the Doctor's plot." After surviving that horrible experience he saw one of his torturers on the street and dropped dead of a heart attack. When Tolstoy was excommunicated by the Orthodox Church, the bishop of Kronstadt wrote a prayer hoping for Tolstoy's death, and the prayer was widely reprinted in conservative newspapers. Count Karl Nesselrode, an aristocrat of Baltic German descent, could not neither write nor speak Russian. Notwithstanding that minor problem he was Russia's foreign minister for four decades. Russian dolls are not an ancestral Russian toy, but in fact were first developed in the 1890s. One Russian aristocrat kept his crayfish, not in water, but in cream and parmesan. Stalin and Prokofiev died on the same day, so the former's death ensured that there would be no flowers for the latter's funeral. Welcome to Orlando Figes' "Natasha's Dance," a history of Russian culture more or less dating from Peter the Great. Clearly his talent for anecdote is the most enjoyable thing about this book. Figes account starts off with the building of Saint Petersburg, and then goes on to discuss the Decembrists, and the mystical "Oriental" nature of Moscow. Then there is a chapter on literary and romanticized views of the peasantry, a chapter on the nature of Russian Orthodoxy, and the Asiatic influence. Finally there is a chapter on the Soviet experience, and a complementary chapter on the emigre one. Many readers will find this book fascinating and informative. Yet a closer look reveals several problems. First off, this is definitely a cultural history from the top down. There is much concentration on the aristocratic elite that most of Russia's great artists came from before 1917. There are many pages on the love and exile of the Decembrist Volkonsky. There is much Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Turgenev and Chekov. There is much about the incredibly lavish and wealthy lifestyle of the Sheremetev family. Indeed there is much about the incredibly lavish and wealthy lifestyle of the aristocracy as a whole. On the other hand, one would be forgiven the view that the aristocracy was almost entirely responsible for this culture. Figes discusses the peasantry in some detail, but when one reads his discussion of the pessimistic views of Chekov, Gorky and Bunin, one might well get the impression that the vast majority of Russians did not deserve the culture they were given. And while Figes discusses the Tatar influence on Russia, he does not discuss the influence of non-Russians who made up the majority of the Empire and nearly half of the Soviet Union. This is particularly striking in his discussion of Orthodoxy, which to Figes defines the Russian character. This leads him to make several fatuous comments ("The entire spirit of the Russian people, and much of their best art and music, has been poured into the Church..." "As Gogol once remarked, the Russians have a special interest in celebrating Easter--for theirs is a religion based on hope."--as opposed to other Christianities, which supposedly aren't). It also causes Figes to downplay those artists, such as Chagall and Mandelstam, who clearly did not define themselves by Orthodoxy. Even more distressing is Figes' fundamentally conventional views. Saint Petersburg is Russia's European city, Dostoevsky is spiritual, Tolstoy is foolish, Chekov is sensible, Stalin is cruel. We get journalistic pseudo-observations such as Figes' comment on "The Rite of Spring": "In these explosive rhythms it is possible to hear the terrifying beat of the Great War and the Revolution of 1917." Really? What we do not have is any particular insight into these works. To learn that Chekov visited prostitutes or that Nabakov was unforgiveably snotty about Akhamatova is not a substitute for a sustained critical examination of their work. One cannot learn why Tolstoy is the exemplar of modern prose by poring over his weaknesses. There is a middlebrow exoticism in Figes' book, as he emphasizes Russia's non-European character and the anti-rational side of Orthodoxy. Although Russian Orthodoxy is hegemonic, Figes also emphasizes that aristocrats wore their religion lightly, which does not explain how Orthodoxy managed to enforce its hold on Russia. There is a problem with Figes' emphasis on the basic paganism of Russian peasants. He is unaware that at the time that Kandinsky and Stravinsky were looking for "pagan" elements in Russian cultures, a similar search for pagan elements can be seen across Europe. More important, historians such as Peter Brown and Ronald Hutton have argued that much of this continuity was spurious. Figes' arguments for a greater pagan influence are not much better; common superstitions such as fortune telling and fear of death, as well as Gorky's conversation with a peasant who cannot understand the Incarnation is not sufficient. Moreover, as the book goes on there is a tendency of padding, with large excerpts from Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Akhamatova and Tsvetaeva. There is an interesting discussion of how Russian musicians used folk influences, as well as invented folk influences by borrowing from European musicians, but it is based mostly on the work of Richard Taruskin. And the emphasis on the difference of "Russia" from "Europe" is made easier by more or less ignoring the last few decades of mass urbanization and mass literacy. Figes' last major work "A People's Tragedy" was judged, correctly, to be superior to Simon Schama's "Citizens." By contrast, this work is clearly not on the level of Schama's "The Embarrassment of Riches."
Rating:
Summary: Very enjoyable
Review: I bought this book because I had just been to Russia. I wish I had bought it before I went - it would have made my trip there so much more enjoyable. Reading this book, I was taken back to Petersburg and Moscow. Mr Figes writes extremely well and he has a peculiar ability to bring a place to life. This book is filled with vivid characters and with memorable anecdotes. It does not give a comprehenseive history of Russian culture - its central focus is the nineteenth century - but it does talk about the things most people want to know: the influence of Europe and Asia; the difference between Moscow and St Petersburg; the culture of the peasants; and the impact of the Revolution on Russian culture. The illustrations are beautiful. Highly recommended for anybody interested in Russia.
Rating:
Summary: Very opiniated book
Review: I didnt feel comfortable with author's personality present in every sentence - I found a lot of times he finds examples to support his point of view and ommits the dociments that prove him wrong. I tried to read this book keeping it in mind and make my own judgements ( cause the book is full of them - some right, some wrong) But the last two chapters on USSR and Russians abroad were brilliant.
Rating:
Summary: Why Rachel Polonsky is wrong
Review: I disagree with the reviewer who finds this not quite "heavyweight" enough. It is not an academic book - and thank God for that - but a superb introduction to the history and the culture of Russia. Figes starts with a wonderful account of the building of St Petersburg in the 1700s, and goes on to discuss the meaning of Europe to Russian culture in the eighteenth century. Europe caused a split in the Russian national identity - and much of Russian culture in the nineteenth century was concerned with how to reconcile the two almost contradictory halves of the Russian character: the native Russian (or Muscovite) and the European (or Petrine). The next chapter takes up the story of 1812, when Russia's writers and artist first began to think about the ways of developing a distinctively "Russian style" in contrast to the West. This is when the Slavophiles were born. There are lots of fascinating details here - on the Russian customs of child-rearing, on interior design and Russian fashions. The next three chapters explore various facets of Russian culture in the nineteenth century: the Moscow tradition; the romantic fascination with the Russian peasants (which Figes explores as a search for nationhood); and the influence of the Orthodox tradition on Russian literature and art. Then there is a speculative chapetr on the cultural influence of the Asiatic steppe/ For me, this was the most original and the most interesting chapter in the book (Rachel Polonsky, in her hatchet-job review in the TLS doesn;t even mention it). In this chapter Figes digs down deep into peasant culture and folklore, showing how the shamanic beliefs of the steppeland nomads (the "Decsendants of Genghiz Khan") left their trace on the Russians/ Finally there are two long chapterson the twentieth century when Russian culture was divided into two: the first on Soviet culture and the last on the emigration to the West. I didn't quite agree with Figes's argument - that in the end Soviet culture was peripheral and failed to change the underlying Russian cultural traditions (represented by Akhmatova). But I was moved by the tremendous emotional impact of these final chapters, which (more than anything I've ever read before) assert triumphantly the endurance of the Russian people and their culture over politics. I am not surprised that Figes has his critics. He writes too well, too flamboyantly;he tackles bigger themes than most academics dare. But for the general reader Natasha's Dance is a rich delight. On every page there is something new and fascinating. There are sumptuous illustrations. And for those who want to read more "heavyweight" volumes there is a comprehensive guide to further reading at the end. In sum- this is a wonderful, enriching book, for anybody with a psssing interest in Russia, its history and culture.
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