Rating: 
Summary: Robert Massie is the "master" story-teller of historians!
Review: My introduction to Robert Massie came when I first picked up a copy of Nicholas and Alexandra last Spring. Frankly I was expecting a serious history book-- In other words I expected it to be dry, dry, dry! What a great surprise to find I could not put it down. Having that great experience made it a no-brainer to read Peter the Great as well-- it was even better.Massie's gift is in his ability to write history in a narrative style, identifying the nuances of each setting and character as well as the heros and antagonists, all while maintaining historical accuracy. No wonder we find that Massie's works have been converted into both film and mini-series. His account of the succession of Peter to Regent Sophia's intrigues is heart stopping. You see directly into the private and public life of this unique Tsar who attempted to drag Russia into the modern era- The good the bad and the ugly. It is simply great stuff! If you are interested in Russia, start out with Peter the Great and go on to Nicholas and Alexandra. These are both excellent books!
Rating:
Summary: A brilliantly written biography
Review: Massie has written THE definitive biography on Russia's most influential and important Czar, Peter I. The story of his life reads like fiction, although it is all true: escaping a palace revolt as a child, learning several trades in order to better understand the work, traveling abroad, building a new capital for the Russian empire, modernizing the Russian army, streamlining the Russian beauracracy, expanding the Russian empire's borders, "westernizing" Russia. This laundry list of accopmplishments and changes are highlighted by Massies lucid and vivid writing, making Peter a flesh and blood ruler - a person with passion and temper, intelligence and a sense of humor. The scholarship is first rate, adding to the strength of the book. I highly recommend it, not only as a biography or history, but as simply good writing.
Rating:
Summary: one of the great biographies
Review: I've always been a great reader of novels, but reading this book a couple of years ago has made me into a reader of history. Massie has a grand subject -- Peter opened a long-sleeping Russia to the West, founded St. Petersburg (a beautiful city built, somewhat like Venice, basically on a body of water) and fought many wars. People must have kept great diaries back then because Massie is able to recreate events at court and battles from multiple points of view, lending the book a novelistic richness. Equally impressive, since the book is as much about Peter's times as it is about him, Massie pauses to include mini-essays about the many places and types of things that Peter the polymath was involved in. So you get a brief sketch of the Netherlands at the time, or about popular torture techniques of the day, that don't break up the overall narrative flow. It's a long book but a great read
Rating:
Summary: Incredible Literature
Review: Peter the Great was a larger than life figure and Massie does a fabulous job describing him and his world in this book. Massie, who is one of the most readable historians I've ever come across, incorporates incredible research and a flair for storytelling to make this both academic and exciting. I began reading the book hoping to learn more about Russia and Peter the Great, but Massie is much more ambitious than that and describes the socio-political climate throughout Europe during Peter's era. It provides a wonderful history lesson and is certainly as thorough as most semester long European history classes. I cannot recommend this book enough to anyone interested in history or enjoys exciting stories about heroic emperors, wars, politics, and foreign cultures. Do not let the length scare you off, this will be one of the best historical books you ever read.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing...
Review: This is an absolutely brilliant book. It is a detailed and well-written biography of one of the most incredible leaders in the history of the world.
Rating:
Summary: The classic biography
Review: The Greatest Russian Peter the Great was a giant. He embodied all that was Russia and aspired too many of the things Russia would later become. As a young man he had learned much about Russia's long and storied history. As Tsar he embarked on unrelenting campaigns against all of Russia's neighbors and forged a modern empire. Massie's Biography of this seminal leader is the standard on the subject. It explored every facet of Peter's long life; his relations with family, his military genius, his ambitions, his fears, his obsessions and his weaknesses. Successive chapters detail the Northern war, the Wars with the Ottomans, the wars in Europe proper, and the final campaign along the coast of the Caspian. In his life Peter 'Piervui' redeemed the Russians at the battle of Poltava and thus set the foundations for the building of Peters 'window on Europe', the city on the Neva named after his saint, St. Petersburg. The brilliant writer, Massie, delivers a tour de force in describing the building of Peter's northern capital. Massie also looks into the dual personality of Peter, his obsession with Europe and his own inward struggles with his weak son. Massie examines relations with both the Ottoman east and the European West. Peter in his life looked forward to a vast Russian empire, one that would one day stretch the length of the continent and on which the 'sun would never set'. Peter dreamed of a world class navy operating from the Baltic to the Mediterranean. He dreamed of liberating the Christians of the Caucasus and Balkans and saw a role for Russia in Europe, all dreams that would be realized by successors like Catherine the Great. A brilliant book, an epic of detail and flavor!
Rating:
Summary: A fascinating biography of a fascinating ruler
Review: This book is very interesting and well-written. Mr. Massie divides Peter's life and rule into several major subdivisions and then proceeds to thoroughly discuss each one. The book traces Peter's near-revolutionary reforms in both foreign and domestic policy. These changed Russia from a poor, isolated state on Europe's periphery to a major power on the European scene. In the sphere of foreign policy, Peter built a formidable Russian navy from almost nothing, and used it to end Swedish hegemony in the Baltic. He also opened up and/or expanded Russian trade contacts with Western Europe. On the domestic scene, Peter imported crucial Western technology (and Western Europeans) to better develop Russia. I especially enjoyed Mr. Massie's detailed atention to the different political actors in Europe in Peter's time, and his sympathetic portrayal of Peter.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding biograhy of Peter and his era
Review: An outstanding history of Tzar Peter "the Great" of Russia and a keen looked at his immediate work in Europe and the Middle East. As a symbol of most great historical texts, Massie tells the story by combining several perspectives: chronological history, leadership, nationalism (in Russian & elsewhere), and alliances. Peter came to the Russian throne at a time that most Europe was entering the Industrial Revolution and peeling the fruits of the Renaissance. Russia needed to quickly come up-to-speed in its culture and military. The book focuses on Peter's strategy to do this: build Russia's first navy, update military tactics, and update Russia's culture while lessing the dependence on the Russian Orthodox Church. The book also delves into the details of Peter's personal life, his various illness, and his clemency to his subjects (especially those military commanders that suffered defeats). He was a born leader, knowing when to drive out fear, and when to force change for the benefit of the Russian State. Massey wrote the perfect history for Peter and 18th century Russia.
Rating:
Summary: Great Story of a Great Man
Review: This without a doubt the finest book I have ever read. Massie brings to life one of the greatest figures in history. From Peter's early life+fascination with all things Western to the building of a huge Empire second only to that of England. The most fascinating part of the book are the chapters dealing w/The Great Embassy to Western Europe. Not only does trying to imagine a 6'7 inch Absolute Monarch trying to remain incognito bring a smile to you face,the Embassy gives Massie a chance to broaden the scope of Peter's story by giving snippets regarding the other great monarchs of the time. Louis XIV,William I,George I+most importantly Charles XII of Sweden whose Empire paid the price for Peter's ambition's. All are brought vividly to life. Most importantly he deals with the conflicted Man that was Peter the Great in a way I have seen no other author do with a subject. Peter was great man+ruler,but he also had a fierce temper+could he almost sadistically brutal. In giving us a portrait of a man--warts+all--Massie succeds in humanizing a Great Man. I cannot recommend this book high enough
Rating:
Summary: Great Book!!!
Review: This book is an awesome one. Massie is a masterful story teller. I believe that he is an excellent historian who tells a story much like a great fictional novel and not shallow fiction at that. If you want an in depth look at Peter the Great and Russian and European history of the time, buy this book!
| 
