Reviews - The Wizard of the Kremlin

The Wizard of the Kremlin by Giuliano da Empoli

285 reviews for:

En spændende og godt fortalt historie om Putin og hans primære spindoktor.

Fra tidernes morgen har Rusland været styret af enevældige herskere, der udnyttede de mange mennesker og områdets rigdom for egen vinding.

Efter Sovjetunionens fald troende jeg en kort overgang på, at nu blev det bedre for russerne og dermed fredeligere for os andre. Jeg tog fejl.

Bogen beretter om hvordan, en helt utrolig kynisme bruges til at skabe en historie som millioner af russere slutter op om på trods af at den på ingen måde er i deres egen interesse.

nzagalo's review against another edition

4.0

“O Mago do Kremlin” (2022), de Giuliano da Empoli, é um romance histórico-político centrado num dos mais relevantes focos da cena política global atual — que domina não só as atenções políticas mas as de toda a sociedade —, e que é o esforço de manutenção do Imperialismo Russo. Empoli é professor de Ciência Política na Sciences-Po, em Paris, é presença assídua nos média italianos e franceses como comentador de política, tendo escrito mais de uma dezena de livros de ensaio, sendo este o seu primeiro romance. O livro ganhou o Grande Prémio de Ficção da Academia Francesa 2022 e foi finalista do prémio Goncourt 2022. Esta breve apresentação será suficiente para dar conta da relevância do livro, mas não quero deixar de dizer que está muito bem escrito; e que a ficção apresenta um enorme nível de verossimilhança.

Continua com links no blog: https://virtual-illusion.blogspot.com/2023/03/o-mago-do-kremlin-2022.html

zoebriand's review against another edition

3.0

informative reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

mojoweiss's review against another edition

3.5

dark informative sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

clrm's review against another edition

4.0

informative medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

maxbroad's review against another edition

4.0

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: N/A

marc129's review against another edition

3.0

Read in French. Obviously this is an interesting novel, if only because it paints a striking picture of Vladimir Putin. Russia's new 'tsar' is cleverly characterized and both his worldview and his implacable cruel attitude are precisely expressed. Da Empoli has done his homework, and for readers who still are wondering why Putin does what he does, this will be an eye-opener. I have to be honest that I didn't learn much new, because I was already closely following international current affairs. Moreover, I find the entire construction of this docu-fiction rather artificial: Da Empoli uses Vadim Baronov, a fictional ex-counselor of Putin, to shed light on the perfidious nature of the current regime in the Kremlin. For 240 pages, the man tells the author in detail about all the internal and external machinations of Putin and the clique around him. And he does this, so to speak, out of sympathy, because that author is also interested in the former Russian writer Zamyatin. It is a confessional monologue that does not seem credible at crucial points: how Baronov acquired the reputation of the new Rasputin, for example, and also how he suddenly realizes how cruel Putin is and withdraws from public life. No, as said, this book is certainly interesting, but really not convincing. (Rating 2.5 stars)