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kathycolvi's review against another edition
5.0
Putin is terrifying and I'm not sure we, in the West, truly grasp his need to take what isn't his, or Russia's. Ukraine?
juliaehill's review against another edition
informative
tense
slow-paced
4.25
Masha Gessen paints a vivid picture of Vladimir Putin and his unlikely rise to the Russian presidency--at least as well as one can, given how strongly Putin attempts to control his own narrative. Full of anecdotes that seem straight out of spy novels (poison aerosolized through heat from a hotel room's bedside lamp! State-directed terrorist attacks on apartment buildings!), you will finish this book even more creeped out by Vladimir Vladmirovich than when you started.
ashkitty93's review against another edition
challenging
informative
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Bounces around considerably, but Gessen’s urgency is undeniable. Reading this over a decade on is chilling; we’ve seen more poisonings, the annexation of Crimea and subsequent war in Ukraine, and growing protests from inside Russia. My heart is with the people, and I’m deeply unsettled by my own government’s naïveté since the collapse of the USSR.
specificity's review against another edition
5.0
A bone-chilling look at the man currently waging a horrible war, and proof that every single thing he's doing right now is something he's been declaring and laying the groundwork for for over twenty years.
dale_kooyenga's review against another edition
4.0
This is as close to an up-close look an author can get to Putin. Masha did an excellent job of utilizing personal knowledge, friends, and research to bring to light the monster that is Putin. No doubt the author must feel and should feel, a bit of "I told you so" following Putin's Ukrain invasion though I doubt the author takes no joy in the unfortunate events.
I did read some negative reviews of the book. Be skeptical, no doubt there are Russian sympathizers on the Russian payrolls whose job is to discredit authors like Mash Gessen.
I did read some negative reviews of the book. Be skeptical, no doubt there are Russian sympathizers on the Russian payrolls whose job is to discredit authors like Mash Gessen.
doritobabe's review against another edition
3.0
I am writing this review at a very late time and while I am in the midst of reading [b:Winter Is Coming: Why Vladimir Putin and the Enemies of the Free World Must Be Stopped|24945308|Winter Is Coming Why Vladimir Putin and the Enemies of the Free World Must Be Stopped|Garry Kasparov|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1425612182s/24945308.jpg|44603738].
Gessen's book was a comprehensive primer to Kasparov's more recent telling of Putin. Her book acts as a brief biography of V Putin and how his upbringing inspired, affected, and aided in his political tyranny. Additionally, Gessen details important events that have transpired during Putin's presidency/rule and how he has acted to secure his position through his responses.
I rated this book so low for two main reasons:
1) Gessen's claim of Putin being some kind of kleptomaniac. Literally, she does this. While this claim may be warranted in her eyes, I find the evidence of this claim to be... irrelevant? Childish? Ultimately, something that doesn't fit well with a professional account.
2) The style and presentation went from formal and seemingly unbiased to emotional and a bit unrestrained, as detailed by the above example.
Otherwise, I am very glad that I read it as it provided me with much needed historical information and a first-person perspective of what things are like in Russia. Being a (young) Canadian, much of my views are distorted and fed by the big-brother below me (the United States) thus not necessarily being the best.
Gessen's book was a comprehensive primer to Kasparov's more recent telling of Putin. Her book acts as a brief biography of V Putin and how his upbringing inspired, affected, and aided in his political tyranny. Additionally, Gessen details important events that have transpired during Putin's presidency/rule and how he has acted to secure his position through his responses.
I rated this book so low for two main reasons:
1) Gessen's claim of Putin being some kind of kleptomaniac. Literally, she does this. While this claim may be warranted in her eyes, I find the evidence of this claim to be... irrelevant? Childish? Ultimately, something that doesn't fit well with a professional account.
2) The style and presentation went from formal and seemingly unbiased to emotional and a bit unrestrained, as detailed by the above example.
Otherwise, I am very glad that I read it as it provided me with much needed historical information and a first-person perspective of what things are like in Russia. Being a (young) Canadian, much of my views are distorted and fed by the big-brother below me (the United States) thus not necessarily being the best.