DownloadThe Portobello Bookshop Gift Guide 2024

A War Made in Russia

Sergei Medvedev author Stephen Dalziel translator

Format:Paperback

Publisher:John Wiley and Sons Ltd

Published:21st Jul '23

Should be back in stock very soon

This paperback is available in another edition too:

A War Made in Russia cover

In this timely and incisive book, Sergei Medvedev argues that Russia’s war in Ukraine was not merely a whim of Putin’s obsession: rather, it was the result of two decades of authoritarian degradation and post-imperial ressentiment, a culmination of Putin’s regime and of Russia’s entire imperial history.  Building on his prize-winning book The Return of the Russian Leviathan, Medvedev argues that it was not only Putin that started this war, but Russia itself, which, by and large, has imagined and embraced it with enthusiasm, seeking to relive its own military glory and colonial past.

Also available as an audiobook.

‘Medvedev represents the best of the Russian critical tradition.  His clear writing and creative analysis stand out amidst the muddle of twenty-first-century writing about Russia. He has been right all along and he is right again in this book.’
Tim Snyder, Yale University

‘In an ocean of recently published books on Putin and Putin’s Russia, Medvedev’s illuminating work stands on its own with its focus on Russia’s Putin: Putin as an embodiment of Russia’s national idea.’
Ivan Krastev, Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia

‘Brilliant’
Victor Sebestyen, The Sunday Times

‘The outstanding clarity of Medvedev’s thought and style places him in the front rank of Russian-born critics of Putin.’
Financial Times

‘The passionate Medvedev is the one to read for those who would like to sign up for a crusade’
Sheila Fitzpatrick, Sydney Morning Herald

‘convincing’
Money Week

‘A searing, deeply disturbing book that shows how violent the country has become’
Victor Sebestyen, The Oldie

ISBN: 9781509558407

Dimensions: 208mm x 135mm x 13mm

Weight: 227g

192 pages