Message from Moscow, by an Observer

New York: Knopf, 1970. 289 p., hardcover. 

condition: very good 

This is a fascinating series of observations on Soviet-era Russia by an anonymous westerner who spent three years in Moscow as a student, beginning with his reaction to the 1968 invasion ("fraternal aid," in Soviet-speak) of Czechoslovakia and the varying degrees of apathy displayed by most of the masses and going on to discuss the life and struggles of the intellectual in Soviet times. Some of what makes the book so fascinating is it's written almost like a novel, in smooth, enjoyable prose. Overall, Soviet Russia emerges as a land of contradictions living side-by-side, seemingly unquestioned. (Beth G., Goodreads)