The author tells the story of people caught between our century and a traditional past. She shows how the high expectations of the new nations were dashed by a harsh conjunction of nature, desperate competition for trade, and the conflict between tradition and modern economic realities. She...

"A pioneer in the field of Russian and Soviet studies in the West, Alfred J. Rieber's five decade career has focused on increasing our understanding of the Russian Empire from Peter the Great to the coming of the First World War. The Imperial Russian Project is a collection of Rieber's lifetime...