The Rasputin File

Rating:
Summary: Intriguing topic, difficult read
Review: I am nearing the end of "Rasputin," and it has not been easy getting through it. I read a great deal, and enjoy history, so the problem hasn't been the subject but the way in which the book is written. Not knowing Russian, I am not sure if the original is difficult to follow, or if only the English translation is a mess. As other readers have stated, were the topic not so fascinating, I don't think I'd have bothered to keep reading such a tedious book.

That said, the author clearly has done a phenomenal research job. The list of characters, divided by their affiliation - whether Romanovs, part of the political circle, part of Rasputin's clique - is essential, especially to one unfamiliar with Russian names and patronymics. I wish the maps were more detailed, perhaps with current state and country borders included, as well as with a distance scale. While the Romanov family tree was very helpful, the names don't always match the names in the body of the book. One important player is the tsarina's sister Elizaveta, who is listed as Elizabeth (or "Ella") in the family tree - I confess it took me some time to figure out that the two were the same!

I feel a time-line from before the beginning of the Romanov dynasty and including the periods of the Russo-Japanese War (mentioned often in the beginning of the book), the first World War, and the Russian Revolution would be helpful. I am not as knowledgeable about Russian History as I perhaps should be, and therefore could have used some more help keeping the events straight.

I was glad to see so many photos, but the cartoons (naturally written in Russian) would have made a LOT more sense had they been translated. Also, the photo captions were merely quotations from the book, rather than offering further elucidation on who - or what - was being pictured.

I would recommend the book to someone who, aside from being interested in Rasputin and the end of the Romanov dynasty, doesn't give up easily. Otherwise, I'd suggest the reader look elsewhere for information that is easier to read.

Rating:
Summary: Not as great
Review: Though this is a fairly interesting book, it is horribly translated.You can kind of tell its the translation because every once in a while you read Radzinsky's unique writing style, that completly captivates you. After reading "The Last Tsar", by Radzinsky this was a fairly big dissapointment. It seems to jump around alot, and quickly change topics. The subject of how Rasputin managed to successfully treat Alexei was not even mentioned. However the book did managed to save itself by the very intresting chapters on what happened at the Yussepov Palace. If you're not already very familiar with the last Romanovs, I would not recommend this.

Rating:
Summary: Unreadable
Review: Whatever nuggets of gold may be lurking in these pages are concealed by layers of the author's self-indulgent prose. He can't resist commenting on witnesses' testimony, usually clarion calls to the effect of "here comes a really amazing revelation". I don't see any new amazing revelations here, or else they are hidden beneath mounds of verbiage. This is an incredible mess of a book. It takes a special kind of literary ineptitude to write boringly about Rasputin.