Russia: A Long View
In this monumental work, Yegor Gaidar, the leading Russian economist of his generation, shows how Russia's economic and political development in the twentieth Century fit into the sweep of global history. Informed by a lifetime of scholarship and practical experience,Russia: A Long Viewis a tour de force that will enliven debates about Russia's place in the world for years to come.(Daniel Treisman, professor of Political Science, University of California, Los Angeles; author ofThe Return: Russia's Journey from Gorbachev to Medvedev)In the mid-1990s, Yegor Gaidar was asked what Russia will look like in twenty years. He said, with amazing prescience, that he was certain it will be a market economy, but far less certain that it will be a democracy. Like the prediction, this book reflects Gaidar's deep and distinctive perspective on long-term economic development, Russia's transition, and Russia's future.(Andrei Shleifer, Professor of Economics, Harvard University)Yegor Gaidar was Russia's 'national treasure.' A reformer of exceptional caliber and daring policy initiatives, he was also a scholar of profound erudition. His luminous writings in this volume show his acute insights into the economics and politics of recent Russian history. They also underline the tragedy of his premature death, which has deprived Russia of his manifold talents at a critical juncture in its troubled transition.(Padma Desai, Gladys and Roland Harriman Professor of Comparative Economic Systems, Columbia University)The causes of modern economic growth are one great mystery, the sources of Russia's plight another. Only someone with the intellectual ambition of Yegor Gaidar would try to penetrate both mysteries in a single volume.(Edward Lucas,TheWall Street Journal)The analysis is remarkably sharp and succinct, devoid of self-exculpation, and informed by an astonishing array of Russian and Western sources. Readers with little knowledge of Russia will be stimulated by the book's ambitious scope, and students of Russian history will be treated to a fresh perspective on critical issues, including an arresting explanation of the collapse of the Soviet Union.