Path-breaking study of the role played by nationalism in the disintegration of the Soviet Union; by d'ncausse (Confiscated Power, 1982), the third woman ever elected to the AcadÇmie Franáaise. D'ncausse notes that the breakup of the vast Soviet empire- -the world's last empire—astonished the world as well as the Soviet leaders themselves, who once again appeared to have been prisoners of their own propaganda. As incidents of dissatisfaction proliferated—in Kazakhstan in 1987; in the Baltic states in 1988; in Georgia, Moldavia, and the Ukraine in 1989—the Soviet government's response was one of ``an uncertain policy that constantly vacillated between mollifying words and inappropriate actions.'' While paying tribute to Gorbachev for his physical courage and his refusal, with few exceptions, to use force to stifle the new national energies, the author notes that leader's ``extraordinary persistence in underestimating the seriousness of the national breaking point.'' Nor was the Red Army helpful; far from being an integrating influence, it was ``rife with interethnic hatred and violence.'' As for the underlying causes for the upheaval, they were many: Islam, d'ncausse contends, played a role similar to that played by Catholicism in Poland; repressed languages surfaced; immigration and the socioeconomic situation were sources of constant irritation; and the astonishing cruelty of Communist rule meant that the central government had no moral stature or reserves of goodwill to draw upon. A remarkable job of untangling a web that was too complicated for the Soviet leadership itself to understand.
Pub Date: Jan. 6, 1993
ISBN: 0-465-09812-6
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Basic Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1992
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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