Beyond Siberia: Two Years in a Forgotten Place

Rating:
Summary: Life in a Forgotten Place
Review: BEYOND SIBERIA is a very readable book about life in one of the least well known parts of Russia--Birobidzhan, the capital of the Jewish Autonomous Region in Russia's Far East. Dirlam and her husband worked for two years as Peace Corps volunteers in that remote region, from 1996 to 1998. Written from the notes that the author kept in her journal during that time, this book chronicles her life, work, and travels in an area of Russia seldom visited by people from the West.

Many of the stories focus on her experiences as a teacher at the Birobidzhan Pedagogical Institute--including classroom conditions, friendships (and conflicts) with her Russian students and Russian colleagues, and interactions with other Peace Corps volunteers. Dirlam provides numerous insightful observations about human relationships in the workplace, as well as among her own personal friends and acquaintances in the Russian Far East. I especially appreciated her honesty in describing both the joys and sorrows, the successes and failures, of working under often difficult conditions in a part of the world that she calls "a forgotten place."

A professional writer before going to Russia, Dirlam does a good job of describing the difficulties of daily life in eastern Russia. I liked her no-nonsense approach to the challenges that she and her husband encountered every day--from shopping and cooking to doing the laundry and buying a train ticket. And I'm sure that readers will enjoy her stories about the Russians whom she befriended during her two years in Birobidzhan. Having lived in the Russian Far East myself, I can attest to the authenticity of her observations and the accuracy of the many situations that she writes about.

BEYOND SIBERIA is a book that will be of particular interest to the hundreds of Peace Corps volunteers who have served in Russia themselves. I also recommend it to anyone with an interest in Russia--and to armchair travellers who would like to learn more about life in this remote "forgotten place." A very good read!

Rating:
Summary: Engrossing and Fascinating
Review: Sharon Dirlam, writing about her Peace Corps years in Siberian Russia, creates a world that you are sorry to leave at the end of the book. That is not to say she paints an idyllic picture of her experience. She writes not only with warmth and humor but with an exceptional honesty, which makes this book doubly engaging because you appreciate its authenticity. A truly fascinating and rewarding read!

Rating:
Summary: Russia's Zion
Review: This is an outstanding book! It would be especially valuable for anyone with an interest in Russia in general, or the Jewish Autonomous Region in particular. That region has been called "Russia's Forgotten Zion." Mara Vishniac Kohn, author of "Children of a Vanished World," has this to say:
"This book is a wonderful experience for the reader. In the far, frozen North of the world we meet two Peace Corps trainers trying to teach young Russians how to teach English. We learn about daily lives, relationships and customs in Birobidjan with its fascinating history. For a great trip, go 'Beyond Siberia.' "

Rating:
Summary: Russia's Zion
Review: This is an outstanding book! It would be especially valuable for anyone with an interest in Russia in general, or the Jewish Autonomous Region in particular. That region has been called "Russia's Forgotten Zion." Mara Vishniac Kohn, author of "Children of a Vanished World," has this to say:
"This book is a wonderful experience for the reader. In the far, frozen North of the world we meet two Peace Corps trainers trying to teach young Russians how to teach English. We learn about daily lives, relationships and customs in Birobidjan with its fascinating history. For a great trip, go 'Beyond Siberia.' "