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MY STRUGGLE

Name: MY STRUGGLE
Author: Vladimir Zhirinovsky
ISBN: 1-56980-074-X

THE EXPLOSIVE VIEWS OF RUSSIA'S MOST CONTROVERSIAL POLITICAL FIGURE

by Vladimir Zhirinovsky ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 1996

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Depending on the outcome of the upcoming presidential elections in Russia, this political manifesto will prove either ridiculous or frightening. Zhirinovsky burst onto the political stage and into the world's focus when his wildly misnamed Liberal Democratic Party won 25 percent of the vote in Russian elections of December 1993. Since then, he has been called a populist, a demagogue, a rabid nationalist, a fascist, a neo-Stalinist; what is abundantly clear from this thin, rambling tract disguised as an autobiography is that he is all of the above and a megalomaniac as well. It is no coincidence that the title is a direct translation of Hitler's Mein Kampf, and as in that notorious work, another potential dictator lays out his master plan based on delusions, fantasies, irrational hatreds, and persecution-mania. Zhirinovsky wallows in bathos as he portrays himself (a Russian) as a victim of ethnic nationalism in the former Soviet Union. After a stint in the Institute of Oriental Languages in Moscow and a career as legal counsel for the Mir Publishing House, Zhirinovsky entered politics. Most of this short book describes a geopolitical vision containing equal parts banalities, clichÇs, and outrageous demands, the key being Russia's ``bid for the South.'' According to Zhirinovsky, Russia must expand its territory to the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea for the benefit to all humankind. In the process, Iran, Afghanistan, and Turkey will have to be dismembered. Another prescription in his global vision calls for a rapid-action force of Russians, Chinese, and Germans to keep the peace in Eurasia. He casts himself in the role of savior and martyr, echoing Nazi demands for Lebensraum, or ``living space.'' Fantasy, utopia, and apocalyptic visions combine in a frightening call to rearrange borders and resurrect the Russian Empire, including demands that the USA return Alaska. If Zhirinovsky does well in upcoming elections, the West and the world will have to deal with yet another fanatical nationalist whose grip on reality is tenuous at best.

Pub Date: July 1, 1996

ISBN: 1-56980-074-X

Page Count: 304

Publisher: Barricade

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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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

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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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.