The Last Man in Russia: The Struggle to Save a Dying Nation by Oliver Bullough (PDF)

Description

Russia is dying from within. Oligarchs and oil barons may still dominate international news coverage, but their prosperity masks a deep-rooted demographic tragedy. Faced with staggering population decline—and near-certain economic collapse—driven by toxic levels of alcohol abuse, Russia is also battling a deeper sickness: a spiritual one, born out of the country’s long totalitarian experiment. In The Last Man in Russia, award-winning journalist Oliver Bullough uses the tale of a lone priest to give life to this national crisis. Father Dmitry Dudko, a dissident Orthodox Christian, was thrown into a Stalinist labor camp for writing poetry. Undaunted, on his release in the mid-1950s he began to preach to congregations across Russia with little concern for his own safety. At a time when the Soviet government denied its subjects the prospect of advancement, and turned friend against friend and brother against brother, Dudko urged his followers to cling to hope. He maintained a circle of sacred trust at the heart of one of history’s most deceitful systems. But as Bullough reveals, this courageous group of believers was eventually shattered by a terrible act of betrayal—one that exposes the full extent of the Communist tragedy. Still, Dudko’s dream endures. Although most Russians have forgotten the man himself, the embers of hope that survived the darkness are once more beginning to burn. Leading readers from a churchyard in Moscow to the snow-blanketed ghost towns of rural Russia, and from the forgotten graves of Stalin’s victims to a rock festival in an old gulag camp, The Last Man in Russia is at once a travelogue, a sociological study, a biography, and a cri de coeur for a dying nation—one that, Bullough shows, might yet be saved.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: From Booklist Russia’s population is plummeting for various reasons, alcohol abuse among them. Statistics on the problem sprinkle this work, and Bullough seeks out explanations that he develops through recent travels in Russia in biographical pursuit of one man, Dmitry Dudko (1922–2004). He was an Orthodox priest whose life span and experiences roughly reflected major events of the Soviet era: collectivization, WWII, the gulag, and the dissident movement. As Bullough journeys to Dudko’s birthplace, seminary, churches, and gravesite in Moscow, and the Arctic sites of his gulag, he portrays Dudko’s character through recollections of acquaintances and Dudko’s underground writings. Able to attract and inspire congregations, Dudko offered hope and mutual trust through an antialcohol message. Unfortunately, Dudko’s popularity also attracted the KGB, which harassed Dudko until he did its bidding. Though not sympathetic to Dudko’s collapse, which he contrasts with the stories of dissidents who went to prison in the 1970s, Bullough portrays it as a result of the waythe Soviet state atomized society and drove it to drink. An inquisitive traveler, Bullough conveys a vividly descriptive impression of contemporary Russia. –Gilbert Taylor Review “PRI’s” “The World” Best Books of 2014 Bullough is a great writer, and anyone who’s traveled in Russia will appreciate his deft handling of the surreal scenes one sometimes encounters in the world’s largest country. “New York Times Book Review” Bullough is a wonderful companion as he traces the course of Father Dudko s life, visiting the miserable settlements and prisons he left behind…. By the end of the book, you, too, will want to drink shots of vodka with him. These are the chronicles of a writer who truly knows Russia, and who is not beyond having his heart broken. Amid the reams of writing coming from experts in the offices of distant research organizations, there are too few accounts like Bullough s, which convey the deep stories in the lives of Russians. He has unearthed a story of remarkable relevance for today: about the man who walked out of Lefortovo Prison with his hatred of a disintegrating system transformed into a hatred of us. “The Economist” Bullough has a good sense of how the traumas of Russia s past affect its present. His new book is a mixture of travelogue and biography, as he traces the life of Father Dmitry Dudko, an Orthodox priest who exemplified both resistance to Soviet rule and defeat at its hands…. He weaves the woes of past decades into his journeys to wretched villages, along with the lies and greed in the metropolis. Father Dmitry may be all but forgotten in modern Russia, but his old self would have plenty to say about it. “Financial Times” “The Last Man in Russia” is a complex interweaving of two stories: alcoholism in Russia, and the destruction of a moral crusader and opposition figure at the hands of a brutal regime…. Bullough has quite a gift for presenting his material in simple and readable prose…. While “The Last Man in Russia” is more complex than Bullough s previous work, it is also a broader and more fulfilling read. “Newsweek” In Oliver Bullough s bleak, beautiful “The Last Man in Russia,” a mix of biography and reportage, Dudko s journey from defiance to submission to self-destruction becomes the archetypal Russian story: a broken man representing a broken nation. “Telegraph,” UK A gritty, deeply embedded travelogue that investigates the culture of drinking, the decline of the Russian family and the experience of trying to remain a man in the Soviet system through a sleuth-like hunt for the real story behind Father Dmitry Dudko. “Sunday Times” (London)”As he follows the locations of the priest’s life, Bullough mixes his own research into Russia’s modern history with stories of encounters on the road, a combination as potent as the vodka that is bringing down the nation…. Out of the story of Father Dmitry’s life and the reality of a nation drowning in drink, Bullough draws an extraordinary portrait of a nation struggling to shed its past and find peace with itself. “Sunday Telegraph” (London)”Part biography, part history, Oliver Bullough’s book is also an attempt to demarcate the front lines of the battle for the Russian soul…. The subject matter is rendered palatable by Bullough’s brisk, lucid style and his skilful interweaving of historical context with his own rich experience of Russia. He has a talent for sketching the people he meets, often administering a welcome dose of humour, and he appreciates the absurd, in the best Russian tradition.Bullough’s questing, roving spirit is admirable…. An ambitious and wide-ranging journey into the heart of a great, sad country.” “The Guardian””More than a thesis on the economics of grain distillation, “The Last Man in Russia” is a contemporary history refracted through the story of one extraordinary man…. Weaving together the narrative strands…and bolstering them with solid research, [Bullough] charts the decline of the Russian nation. He is particularly good at conjuring key moments, vivid characters and credible dialogue, and at flipping between the small incident and the big picture…. Imagining is a whole lot easier with such a lively, well-written and commanding narrative to guide us.” “The Christian Science Monitor” Bullough has tracked down some of those past and present brave souls who have stood up to the monstrous pressures and violence; doing so, Bullough has renewed his own and our faith in the tradition of Russian dissidents remarkable integrity. The writing is sparkling and his appreciation for the real heroism of so many Russians is enough to give us hope against hope that the people will free themselves from their increasingly corrupt and incompetent government. The unreasonable and wonderful faith that Bullough, Navalny, and the persecuted rock band Pussy Riot seem to share is that as bad as Russia is now, as locked down as it is now, it can t stay locked. There are too many keys in circulation that will open the door to Mother Russia s revival. “Daily Telegraph” (London)”In this superb hybrid of travel and social analysis, “The Last Man in Russia,” Bullough casts a despairing eye on a nation’s death through alcohol…. In pages of raw, poetic prose, Bullough travels to Father Dmitry’s birthplace in western Russia and on to his prison-Gulag, 1,250 miles from Moscow. Throughout, he dilates sorrowfully on the self-denial of vodka drinkers…. “The Last Man in Russia” is distinguished by the excellence of its writing and its lucid, unsparing gaze. “Literary Review””Eccentric but beguiling…. [Bullough] has a fine eye for telling, classically Russian scenes and moments.” “Times Literary Supplement,” UK A very engaging travelogue-cum-biography. “Kirkus Reviews” In a vivid, colorful account of his journeys, Bullough starkly chronicles the visible evidence of Russia s despair in abandoned villages, ruined farms, shuttered factories and ubiquitous drunkennessPart biography, part travelogue, a perceptive, sad and very personal analysis of the decline of a once-great nation. “Publishers Weekly””Pursuing Father Dmitry s story takes Bullough on a crisscross journey of modern day Russia, affording glimpses into the lives of Russians, which is rich with vodka but little else, least of all hope…. While most of what Bullough finds in the past and the present shows why one Russian priest told him, I look at the future with pessimism, the book does end with a glimmer of hope, which is a fitting tribute to Father Dmitry and to Bullough s ability to find and illuminate a story worth telling.” “Library Journal” A compelling read, Bullough s book is a must for anyone interested in the sociological, psychological, or personal effects of faith and political change on a nation struggling to find its identity and sustain hope. “Russian Life Magazine” Dudko’s story is indeed a fascinating one and worthy of the space and time that Bullough gives it. And the manner of his telling – as much a modern travelogue far off beaten Russian paths as a biography – is both unusual and engaging. For in understanding Dudko, we better understand all that Russians have been throughthe book ends on a high note, with the nascent hope that filled 2011’s winter demonstrations. “Booklist””An inquisitive traveler, Bullough conveys a vividly descriptive impression of contemporary Russia.” Andrew Meier, author of “The Lost Spy: An American in Stalin s Secret Service” Few in the West dare take note of the Russian cross: the birth and death rates that head in opposite directions and forecast a grim future for the world s largest country. But Oliver Bullough travels Russia with eyes wide open. “The Last Man in Russia” is an archeological dig in search of a moral compass. Tracing the life of a single priestfrom believer to dissident to apologist for the state and even Stalinhe lays bare the troubles haunting the new Russia. ” About the Author Oliver Bullough studied modern history at Oxford University before moving to Russia in 1999. He lived in St. Petersburg, Bishkek and Moscow over the next seven years, working as a journalist for local magazines and newspapers and then for Reuters news agency. He reported from all over Russia, Georgia, Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan, but liked nothing more than to work among the peoples and mountains of the North Caucasus. He moved back to Britain in 2006, and now lives in Hackney, East London. Read more

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Unless you have a particular interest in Russian history, especially that of the Orthodox Church,there isn’t much here to hold your attention. The title and the forward are a little deceptive.

⭐Oliver Bullough’s The Last Man in Russia is, first of all, a travelogue of his recent journeys in (mostly rural) Russia, which document the devastating legacy — social, humanitarian, economic, and environmental — of the Soviet Union. Secondly, it is a history of the dissident movement of the 1970s, focusing on the biography of one individual, the priest Dimitry Dudko, on his journey from Gulag survivor, to inspirational figure, to irretrievably compromised and ruined individual. The juxtaposition of the travelogue and the biography is an apt one, for the tragedy of Fr. Dimitri parallels the tragedy of late- and post-Soviet Russia. In this, Bullough’ work is compelling. Distracting from the book’s merits are odd inconsistencies in terminology and perspective, mostly, if not exclusively, relating to his treatment of the Russian Orthodox Church. For example, sometimes individuals are baptized, at other times christened; sometimes the iconostases of Russian churches are icon screens, at other times a ‘pyramid screen'(?); sometimes the Eucharistic service is a liturgy, at other times a mass; Prince (St.) Vladimir is referred to as ‘King’ Vladimir; and so on. These are minor points, but odd coming from someone fluent in English and Russian and writing the biography of an Orthodox priest. Perhaps these inconsistencies represent the work of an inexpert editor, rather than Bullough’s own words. In an apparent effort for currency, there are some passing remarks at the end of the book regarding recent events, such as the Pussy Riot incident, where, regrettably, he merely reiterates conventional media wisdom rather than discussing the range and nuances of reactions to the event. Throughout the book, Bullough has an outsider’s perspective on what he observes and learns. He has spent a good deal of time in Russia, without developing much sympathy for Russians. This is both the strength and the weakness of the book. On the one hand, it facilitates objective reporting of his observations, and on the other hand, it limits his understanding of the people whom he encounters. Still, highly-recommended for those wishing to gain a deeper understanding of contemporary Russia.

⭐This book is definitely worthy of a place in the library of any student of Russia. For some reason, this country has always been best learnt about from books in the form of travelogue cum historical investigation ever since the Marquis de Custine created the genre in 1839. I find it particularly frightening for Russia that Custine’s observations then remain as true today as they evidently were then. The following are from the Wikipedia entry on the Marquis de Custine:”Russia is a nation of mutes; some magician has changed sixty million men into automatons.””Nations have always good reasons for being what they are, and the best of all is that they cannot be otherwise.””The love of their country is with them only a mode of flattering its master; as soon as they think that master can no longer hear, they speak of everything with a frankness which is the more startling because those who listen to it become responsible.””I came here to see a country, but what I find is a theater… The names are the same as everywhere else… In appearances everything happens as it does everywhere else. There is no difference except in the very foundation of things.””I don’t reproach the Russians for being what they are; what I blame them for is their desire to appear to be what we [Europeans] are…. They are much less interested in being civilized than in making us believe them so… They would be quite content to be in effect more awful and barbaric than they actually are, if only others could thereby be made to believe them better and more civilized.”Quotations are from George F. Kennan, The Marquis de Custine and his Russia in 1839, Princeton University Press, 1971. Oliver Bullough’s book confirms the undiminished actuality of those 150 year old observations and is an excellent addition to this line of enquiry. It will be enjoyed by anyone interested in this benighted country that, despite occasional inchoate urges to do so and the efforts of its ever less numerous intelligentsia, somehow never seems to be able to extricate itself from its more and more diminished position in the axis of evil. The Last Man in Russia sadly confirms that all we can expect from this wonderfully sympathetic and long-suffering people and country is that they will go on and on stumbling from one self-created humanitarian disaster to another, spoiling the world for themselves and possibly for us too. If only “they” were the ones to be reading and writing such books – about “themselves” and/or about “us”! All that’s really lacking is a little bit of insight!

⭐I share some of the reservations of the negative reviews here. The dramatic (publisher’s?) title alludes to the Russian depopulation problem discussed in the book and promises revelatory insight where there is very little to be found. The book seems confused about what it wants to be: travelogue, biography, social history, serious academic study or novel – there is some painful overwriting, including at one point a description of some hills looking like killer whales! Although Bullough keeps telling us what an inspirational and engaging figure Father Dmitri was, he remains obscure and his trail feels like a false premise for a rather self-indulgent jaunt around Russia. We read a great deal about how much this priest wrote and how electrifying his sermons were, but in spite of the author’s claim to have read every word of this material, there are few quotations or witness evidence to this Christian magnetism. The somewhat vague references to the press coverage of the persecution do not persuade me of the book’s thesis that this priest’s biography has an importance on a par with someone like Solzhenitsyn.A look at the endnotes will tell you that Bullough is uncritically reliant on a few secondary sources for the more serious pages and as such they have nothing to add to our understanding of the Cold War. Neither is there any discussion of the badly-managed, chaotic power-grab of the 1990s that produced Putin’s Russia as it is today.I was initially taken by the descriptions of long train and bus rides through the vast, bleak wildernesses of Russia, but soon these become as tiresome for us as they must have been for Bullough, especially when you realise that many of them are virtually fruitless. For example, much of chapter ten is taken up with an attempt to find Father Dmitri’s retreat in an obscure province following his release by the Soviet authorities. There are several pages on the author’s taxi ride and crawl around the snow through a rundown, deserted village looking for a particular house. The narrative then moves onto a description of the taxi ride back and you understand that he has actually failed to find the house at all. You wonder (a) why this pointless journey has been included in the final text and (b) what it would have added even if Bullough had found the house he was looking for? Perhaps the real purpose of this section, not for the first time in the book, is to demonstrate the author’s generosity in tipping poor Russians: ‘I gave him two 500-rouble notes, and realised as I did so that that was half a week’s pension.’ In any case, there is far too much of this padding.If you like your history told in a narrative, chatty, first-person manner then you may enjoy this, but I can’t help but feel that we are supposed to understand that the real hero of the book is Oliver Bullough.

⭐This book is a combination of trying to explain why Russia is going downhill fast and also trying to paint some kind of portrait of one of the most famous Soviet dissidents.In the first and most interesting category Mr.Bullough focuses on the consumption of alcohol and the falling birth rate in Russia. He draws on official statistics and the picture he presents is both frightening and accurate. Having had many drinks with Russians in all sorts of circumstances I can only verify that what he presents is the actual situation. Many commentators focus on official statistics and forget that a huge amount of alcohol is also produced as Samagon (=Moonshine) and more and more people are turning to that. This is a decease in Russia that has so far not a good prognosis.The Falling birth rates is not only a Russian problem, we have the same problem in the rest of Europe and the US but in Russia it is by far worse. Few countries have so far come up with a solution to this, but it is one of the greatest problems we have in the modern world. So far, only minor attempts have been made to solve this problem in Russia but without any long-term effects.The Other part of the book focus on presenting the life of an Orthodox priest that started out as a dissident and ended as a KGB supporter and an anti-Semite. It is an interesting story but maybe not for a full book.The Combination of these two attempts to explain where Russia is heading in the future is slightly unfocused and not all together that rewarding but it is well worth reading. If you been to Russia and know Russians you will recognize the country in this book.

⭐A totally enthralling book. Why are Russians permanently drunk? Why do they hide from the truth? Because generation after generation has lost the ability the trust. Lying is endemic. The KGB have a terrifying ability both to manipulate the truth and their people.Bullough follows the fortunes of a good priest, Father Dmitri, and assesses how the KGB eventually broke him.

⭐Have just finished reading this book and admire anyone who can spend so much time in the awful cold or heat, travelling in ramshackle buses and trains out to nowhere, in order to trace the life of a deceased (and failed ?) priest.It is a very interesting way to trace the reasoning behind the incredible alcohol consumption and falling population within the USSR, now Russia.However, if you are not already familiar with what went on behind the Iron Curtain, then this book may seem a little dull.I personally found it of good interest, but not as super as his previous book “Let Our Fame Be Great” on the Nth Caucusus.

⭐I bought this after being badgered by the ‘suggestions’ function and I didn’t regret it for a moment. Written in the style of a travelogue, the book combines an interest in Russia’s past with a deep concern for its present. Bullough’s relaxed style never intrudes in the carefully written text and he wears his scholarship lightly. All-in-all a great read for anyone trying to understand contemporary Russian society.

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