This is a profoundly ambitious attempt to piece together the whole of Russia by way of anecdote. It isn’t the work of analysis it sometimes thinks it is; but it is a troubling, often gripping and amazingly comprehensive portrait of a country that defies portraiture. Andrew Meier travels to all points of the compass in Russia, from, briefly, Moscow, to Siberia, Chechnya, St. Petersburg and beyond.

To the extent that he has a central question, it is this – why do Russians (who he clearly admires) accept their country as it is? An important question, and one that opinion polls address more scientifically but with far less nuance. This is a disturbing book, but an engrossing attempt to read Russian “hearts and minds.”