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La casa eterna

La casa eterna

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  • Create Date：2021-08-19 02:50:59
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Yuri Slezkine
  • ISBN：841837022X
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Summary

Saga de la Revolución rusa。

Proyectada por el visionario arquitecto Borís Iofán e inaugurada en 1931， la Casa del Gobierno es un colosal edificio de más de quinientos apartamentos que se alza en la orilla del río Moscova， delante del Kremlin， destinado en origen a alojar a los principales dirigentes e intelectuales soviéticos y a sus familias。 Yuri Slezkine rastrea la historia de los devotos e ideólogos de la causa bolchevique que gobernaron la URSS y terminaron convirtiéndose en víctimas de las purgas estalinistas。 Un texto que combina hábilmente biografía， crítica literaria e historia con las fascinantes teorías sobre las revoluciones， las profecías milenaristas y las utopías。 El resultado es el relato， en la tradición de Guerra y paz， Vida y destino y Archipiélago Gulag， de los avatares de los inquilinos de un edificio que， como la propia Unión Soviética， fue un inquietante experimento humano y terminó habitado por los fantasmas de los desaparecidos que， pese a los empeños del régimen， jamás cayeron en el olvido。

The House of Government: A Saga of the Russian Revolution （2017）

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Reviews

Johnny ，

Great book。 It's structured and un-structured， it's a bit fun and helluva scary， it's historical， anecdotal and philosofical， all at once。 Crazy good， and I just had to read it in one go。 Great book。 It's structured and un-structured， it's a bit fun and helluva scary， it's historical， anecdotal and philosofical， all at once。 Crazy good， and I just had to read it in one go。 。。。more

Robert Varik ，

Selle suve suur lugemine sai eile otsa。 Tegemist on raamatuga， mis mõtestab suurepäraselt kogu Nõukogude eksperimendi 1917。 aastast kuni Hruštšovi sula alguseni。 Teos teeb seda， vaadates kommunismi poliitilise religioonina， ja seeläbi toob paralleele kõiksuguste usundite ja usuvooludega， mis on läbi ajaloo eksisteerinud （eeskätt ususektid， vähem institutsionaliseerunud usundid）， ja läbinud samu faase， mis bolševism ja Nõukogude Liit， proovides niiviisi anda Nõukogude "saagale" "loomulikku" kohta Selle suve suur lugemine sai eile otsa。 Tegemist on raamatuga， mis mõtestab suurepäraselt kogu Nõukogude eksperimendi 1917。 aastast kuni Hruštšovi sula alguseni。 Teos teeb seda， vaadates kommunismi poliitilise religioonina， ja seeläbi toob paralleele kõiksuguste usundite ja usuvooludega， mis on läbi ajaloo eksisteerinud （eeskätt ususektid， vähem institutsionaliseerunud usundid）， ja läbinud samu faase， mis bolševism ja Nõukogude Liit， proovides niiviisi anda Nõukogude "saagale" "loomulikku" kohta inimajaloos。 Teose tuumaks on arvukad tegelased läbi kelle isiklike lugude ka Nõukogude Liidu lugu lahti rullub。 Autor on teinud tööd massiivse allikahulgaga ning seeläbi avaldub peaaegu pool raamatu sisust läbi n-ö bolševike enda suu （st tsitaatide）。Paraku on see ka teose suurim miinus。 Tegelaste mõtted on liigselt korduvad ning raamat võinuks olla oluliselt lühem， et teha selgeks oma peamine sõnum。 Tean aga， et see oli autori sihilik otsus， mitte lühendada oma tegelaste mõtteid， vaid neid täielikul kujul avaldada。 Muidugi on see mõistetav ning paljudele lugejatele võib see ka meeldida （eriti võibolla ajaloolastele， kes häid allikaid otsivad）。 Mõistagi on siin raamatus veel aspekte， läbi mille autor Nõukogude riiki analüüsib。 Nt huvitab teda kuivõrd suurel määral põhines bolševike maailmavaade klassikalisel kirjandusel ning kuidas viimane seega Nõukogude reaalsust voolis。 Igatahes annab raamat mõtlemisainet palju ning on minu arvates soovitatav kirjandus kõigile， keda huvitab Nõukogude riik。 Aeg aga peab lugejal endal olema。 。。。more

Aveugle Vogel ，

"I thought of a Yalta pony" "I thought of a Yalta pony" 。。。more

Munoz Reviews ，

The characters are nothing less that gratifying。

Yuri Fuchs ，

This books is not nothing but unique。 It is sprawling and often meandering。 Yet， it somehow manages to link its various strands together into a compelling and touching narrative covering the early years of Bolshevism and the Soviet Union。 The odd thing though is that I wouldn't necessarily recommend this book to everyone （see caveat below）， which seems strange to say for how much I enjoyed it。To keep the summary of the book short--which is hard because this book is nearly 1，000 pages long before This books is not nothing but unique。 It is sprawling and often meandering。 Yet， it somehow manages to link its various strands together into a compelling and touching narrative covering the early years of Bolshevism and the Soviet Union。 The odd thing though is that I wouldn't necessarily recommend this book to everyone （see caveat below）， which seems strange to say for how much I enjoyed it。To keep the summary of the book short--which is hard because this book is nearly 1，000 pages long before the footnotes--it is a history of the Russian Revolution， the Russian Civil War， and （mostly） the early years of Soviet Union spanning the period from around the 1890s to about the late 1930s with a few chapters wrapping up events following World War II and the end of Stalinism。 Now for the longer summary: the book is not a baseline history of the main events during that period or necessarily of the major events/figures。 Rather， it tells the history through the eyes of the inhabitants of the House on the Embankment， a massive apartment building on the Moskva River built in the early years of the Soviet Union that was home to a number of Soviet officials， artists， and other nomenklatura。 Hence， the book's title: "The House of Government。" The book covers the lives of these real world people and the changing cultural and political climate in the early Soviet Union。 If this sound like a novel in a sense， it's because the book practically is。 Much like a novel it introduces the reader to its cast of "characters" in the later tsarist years as revolutionaries and tracks their journey through the Civil War， the （relatively） calm period of the 1920s to collectivization and finally （for many of the characters） the purges in the late 1930s。 But like a true Russian novel， "The House of Government" is long and winding in its course 。 。 。 much like this review， which I originally meant to keep to two short paragraphs。 Slezkine has whole chapters discussing early Soviet literature， architecture， theater， and familial life。 If you've read Slezkine's other work "The Jewish Century，" these asides won't be new to you， but there's even more of them in "The House of Government。" In fact， the book is replete with literary references including block quotes from certain Russian and Soviet writers as well as the favorites of the old Bolsheviks， Goethe and Heine。 If this seems a bit much， it might seem so but somehow it still serves the narrative。 But on top of this Slezkine devotes a full chapter to what could be considered the dominant "theme" of the book: the author's assertion that Bolshevism was a millenarian sect and that its devotees （i。e。 the "characters"） were driven by its promise of a fundamental transformation of the world much like 。 。 。 religions。 Apparently， this theme rubbed some formal reviewers like the Guardian the wrong way who accused it of being reductive。 I found it to be kind of clever/funny （i。e。 a political-economic ideology rooted in atheism and logic still believed there was a promised moment of deliverance）。 In any event， though， even you find this theme objectionable， it serves the author's framing of his narrative。 Ultimately， the asides in the book might seem tangential， but I found them though provoking and otherwise full of interesting anecdotes regarding early Soviet life and art。 Nonetheless， where the book really shines though is in the narrative of its "characters" whose inner lives and struggles Slezkine fleshes out through old letters， records， and other exhaustive research。 You come to care about many of them often rendering you heartbroken when they come face to face with the brutally inhuman and callous events that made up early Soviet history。Now for the main caveat about this book: it is not for a lay reader and may not be for someone who is not well versed in the historical background。 In other words， despite its name， the book is not a primer for Soviet history so if the names Sverdlov， Bukharin， Kolstov， and/or Babel don't ring a bell， it may be difficult to follow along。 In fact， I'm not entirely sure how accessible this book is if you're not a Sovietologist， have read a fair bit on Russian history and culture， or were raised in a Soviet Russian household where your parents made you read Ilf and Petrov at the age of 15。That said， this is a one of a kind， wonderful work of history in its concept and scope， and I would highly recommend this book for anyone with an interest in the underlying subject matter。 。。。more

Domingo Martínez ，

Ofrece una interpretación que se desmarca de los paradigmas propagandísticos de la guerra fría （pro-/anti-） y apunta a los aspectos más profundos de la revolución rusa。 No es una historia político institucional， sino una combinación entre historia de la literatura， historia de las religiones y antropología， con decenas de pequeñas biografías que se entrecruzan。 El libro se centra en dos grupos: la élite revolucionaria （los "bolcheviques viejos"， que en su gran mayoría serán víctimas de las "purg Ofrece una interpretación que se desmarca de los paradigmas propagandísticos de la guerra fría （pro-/anti-） y apunta a los aspectos más profundos de la revolución rusa。 No es una historia político institucional， sino una combinación entre historia de la literatura， historia de las religiones y antropología， con decenas de pequeñas biografías que se entrecruzan。 El libro se centra en dos grupos: la élite revolucionaria （los "bolcheviques viejos"， que en su gran mayoría serán víctimas de las "purgas" de Stalin a fines de los años treinta）， y sus descendientes， cuyo periodo de niñez y formación coincide con la revolución。Trae mucho material documental: extractos de novelas， cartas， discursos， actas de reuniones， etc。， que dan una idea de cómo la revolución fue entendida por quienes la hicieron y padecieron。 。。。more

Abby ，

An unreal and singularly compelling history of Soviet Russia。 Yuri Slezkine unites the rare capabilities of a scholar and a storyteller in this appropriately epic-length history， which pivots around the House of Government， the massive housing complex for the socialist/communist faithful。 It is a massive book， but incredibly readable from start to finish。Slezkine is particularly adept at zooming in and out on his subjects。 At one moment， he relates the intimate thoughts， letters， and diary entri An unreal and singularly compelling history of Soviet Russia。 Yuri Slezkine unites the rare capabilities of a scholar and a storyteller in this appropriately epic-length history， which pivots around the House of Government， the massive housing complex for the socialist/communist faithful。 It is a massive book， but incredibly readable from start to finish。Slezkine is particularly adept at zooming in and out on his subjects。 At one moment， he relates the intimate thoughts， letters， and diary entries of individual people; at the next， he pans out and assesses human history， religion， and culture in broad strokes。 Along with direct quotations and painstaking research， he spends a great deal of time analyzing Soviet literature， showing us what it reveals about ascendant revolutionary beliefs。Throughout this history， Slezkine argues that Soviet socialism and its attendant fantasies of true communism were the latest in a long line of millennarian sects （mimicking many features of Christian apocalyptic cults， among other religions）。 This was a revelatory lens for me through which to better understand Russian communism。 The Russian insistence on the coming utopia and the abolishment of the family and private property as the path to social enlightenment can be found in every chapter of the revolution。 Slezkine makes it easy to understand how such a charming-sounding fundamentalist vision could result in the brutality， inhumanity， and absolute disregard for human life that characterized the Russian revolution。Recommended especially to young progressives who think Marx is a cool avatar and that socialism is super-rad， bleating it’ll be different this time… 。。。more

Jenny Nelson ，

Laughing at the memory of a time when I thought I would finish this by the end of February。 Really interesting—I learned a lot， and thought about this book a lot—but it feels like there are four of five shorter books contained within that each would have been better off for tighter narrative structure。 I have read reviews in which people bemoan big， ambitious books that have been hobbled by excess， and typically I love those books， not least for their ambition， but this book is a shaggy monster Laughing at the memory of a time when I thought I would finish this by the end of February。 Really interesting—I learned a lot， and thought about this book a lot—but it feels like there are four of five shorter books contained within that each would have been better off for tighter narrative structure。 I have read reviews in which people bemoan big， ambitious books that have been hobbled by excess， and typically I love those books， not least for their ambition， but this book is a shaggy monster that could have done with a haircut。 。。。more

Toomas Kääparin ，

Olen mõnevõrra pettunud。 Raamatu magnetiks olnud pealkiri e。 Valitsuse maja kohta on ehk pühendatud viiendik。 See viiendik on küll päris detailne， aga siiski viiendik。 Lisaks ei ole mulle veenev bolševismi võrdlus erinevate ususektidega。 Veidi häiris korduste esinemine。

Viktoria ，

What I thought I was getting 。。。 a book that would follow one Soviet building and thus tracing that bit of history with a different perspective and touchstone。 What I got a book that has a chapter arguing on is Bolshevism a religion， referencing US constitutional law and the rise of monotheistic religion in the Middle East。 It seems to be more an amalgamation of every journal and correspondence the author could find。 I should have taken the authors description of the book as an epic like war and What I thought I was getting 。。。 a book that would follow one Soviet building and thus tracing that bit of history with a different perspective and touchstone。 What I got a book that has a chapter arguing on is Bolshevism a religion， referencing US constitutional law and the rise of monotheistic religion in the Middle East。 It seems to be more an amalgamation of every journal and correspondence the author could find。 I should have taken the authors description of the book as an epic like war and peace as a warning。 It’s not completely scattered but I feel like I was misled by the summary and premise getting a different book。 And there are so many characters and topics。 It just lacks focus and the author instead feels like they can take every topic as a chance to go down every rabbit hole without focus。 I ended up skipping parts to get back to the history and out of the philosophizing。 。。。more

Artem ，

«Дом правительства» как хронология большевизма ничем не примечателен и местами поверхностный （кроме эпизода о Бухарине， там оптимальное количество дневников）， возьмите что-то покороче。 Зато это незаменимый обзор советской литературы:* соцреализма и производственных романов， которые трудно читать， но они густо раскиданы по постсоветской литературе и я их не узнавал （в первую очередь， сильно яснее стала база образов Нормы и Голубого сала）;* литературы， на которую массовая культура сбила оптику， бу «Дом правительства» как хронология большевизма ничем не примечателен и местами поверхностный （кроме эпизода о Бухарине， там оптимальное количество дневников）， возьмите что-то покороче。 Зато это незаменимый обзор советской литературы:* соцреализма и производственных романов， которые трудно читать， но они густо раскиданы по постсоветской литературе и я их не узнавал （в первую очередь， сильно яснее стала база образов Нормы и Голубого сала）;* литературы， на которую массовая культура сбила оптику， будто это жуткая （или умеренная） антисоветчина — Платонов， Бабель， Петров;* корпуса сочинений Трифонова — как последовательности непротиворечащих выводов。 。。。more

Richard Thompson ，

"The House of Government" is not entirely successful。 It is too long， and I did not buy some of the historical theory。 The same complaints can be made about "War and Peace，" but "War and Peace" is still one of the best books ever written。 And while "The House of Government" may not be "War and Peace，" it is an outstanding piece of writing。Mr。 Slezkine tells the history of the Russian communist era from the perspective of an apartment block in Moscow built in the 30s to house top government offic "The House of Government" is not entirely successful。 It is too long， and I did not buy some of the historical theory。 The same complaints can be made about "War and Peace，" but "War and Peace" is still one of the best books ever written。 And while "The House of Government" may not be "War and Peace，" it is an outstanding piece of writing。Mr。 Slezkine tells the history of the Russian communist era from the perspective of an apartment block in Moscow built in the 30s to house top government officials。 The people in the book are presented in their most intimate domestic setting， with bits of imagined detail and analysis of thoughts and motivations， so that the book sometimes feels more like a novel than a history。 The characters are mostly just below the top rank of Soviet power。 They rub shoulders with Stalin and the top bosses， but are not the ones pulling the strings。 They go out for stints in the provinces to deport kulaks， collectivize farms， implement the five year plans or arrest wreckers and then back to Moscow for time with family， visits to the dacha， card games， reading and studying。 Sometimes it is an expression of the banality of evil， but other times it feels like stories of good people trying hard to build a better world， trying to live ordinary lives happily while working for a cause that they deeply believed in。 Of course， once Stalin started purging the Party in the late 30s， following the assassination of Kirov， many of these people were arrested， labeled as traitors and shipped off to the Gulag。 It's hard to wish that suffering on anyone， but it was often a fate that they deserved。The theme that Mr。 Slezkine weaves into the fabric of the book is that Bolshevik communism was a Millenarian cult。 From its faith in an imminent utopian future， to its demand for absolute unswerving loyalty to the leader， to its written gospel， to its demands for faith， vows of poverty and selfless service to the cause， it had all of the hallmarks of other Millenarian cults， starting first and foremost with early Christianity。 He has a point。 I agree that there are some valid parallels， but this method of analysis feels incomplete to me， and sometimes he strains a bit to shove round pegs into the square holes of his analytical framework。 It's like using Freudian analysis or queer theory as the lens for analyzing a novel。 Doing so may reveal some truths， even some very important ones， and may show the richness of the material being analyzed， but it rarely tells the whole story。Still in the end my complaints are minor。 This book is a towering achievement。 I have read probably twenty books of Twentieth Century Russian history， including all three volumes of "The Gulag Archipelago。" I have read Marx and Lenin and Plekhanov。 I have read four or five biographies of Stalin。 I have read a ton of twentieth century Russian literature， including most of the "classics" of Socialist Realism。 You would think that by this time it would be hard to hand me a book about this era that would show me anything new， but Mr。 Slezkine managed to surprise and delight me。 He gave me a completely different way of looking at a familiar time and place。 Sometimes I think that the true purpose of art is to get the audience to see the world in a different light。 If that's right， then this is a fine piece of art。 。。。more

Michael Perkins ，

This book， at least in Part I， is quite literary。 The Russians， steeped in literature， can really write poetic prose。 The author quotes the historical actors throughout to capture the "you are there" feel for the reader。 Here's just one example where an activist named Mikhail Fridliand describes going to the State Duma Headquarters in the Tauride Palace in St Petersburg， where the Provisional Government was housed just after the fall of the Tsarist state。"I made my way to the palace through the This book， at least in Part I， is quite literary。 The Russians， steeped in literature， can really write poetic prose。 The author quotes the historical actors throughout to capture the "you are there" feel for the reader。 Here's just one example where an activist named Mikhail Fridliand describes going to the State Duma Headquarters in the Tauride Palace in St Petersburg， where the Provisional Government was housed just after the fall of the Tsarist state。"I made my way to the palace through the menacing darkness， accompanied by the sound of random gunfire— now close at hand， then far away， then suddenly right next to my ear。 The moon shone down in place of the streetlamps， which had long since been extinguished; the soft， warm snow fluttered down and tinted the streets a light blue。 Trucks full of people kept rushing by every few minutes and then disappearing around the corner like screaming， rattling apparitions。 The area in front of the palace， on Shpalernaia， was almost unbearably bright and noisy。 Tauride had always been a quiet， old， cozy place， with silent doors and waxed floors， deputies strolling about arm in arm， and Duma marshals bobbing and gliding by。 Now it was completely unrecognizable， with feverishly moving bright spots and a thousand sparkling lamps lighting up the darkness， exciting the city’s mutinous blood and sucking it in with its pale tentacles。 Directly in front of the main entrance， in the middle of the white， fluffy garden， a large， magnificent automobile lay on its side， like a wounded animal， its bruised nose and headlights buried in the snow。 One of the doors was open， and large snowy footprints were visible on the stylish rug and tender leather of the seats。 The entire courtyard around it was filled with motorcycles， carts， sacks， and people— a whole sea of people and movement breaking against the entrance in waves。"He continues。。。。"The sudden chaos of new creation had lifted up the ancient house， widened it， enlarged it， and made it enormous， capable of encompassing the revolution and all of Russia。 Catherine Hall had become a barracks， parade ground， lecture hall， hospital， bedroom， theater， a cradle for the new country。 Flooding in， all around me， were countless streams of soldiers， officers， students， schoolgirls， and janitors， but the hall never seemed to grow too full; it was enchanted; it could accommodate all the people who kept coming and coming。 Chunks of alabaster from the walls crunched underfoot， amidst machine-gun belts， scraps of paper， and soiled rags。 Thousands of feet trampled over this trash as they moved about in a state of confused， joyous， incomprehensible bustle。'===For all the romance expressed above， however， this generation of Marxist rebels were quite religious in their own way， captive of a form of Millenarianism， a vengeful fantasy of the dispossessed。 As with religion， people were divided into two camps: "us" and "them。" Lenin would accentuate that， and it would become quite ruthless， with nine groups to be subjected to “concentrated violence”:1） the parasitic strata （former landowners， rentiers of all kinds， bourgeois entrepreneurs not directly involved in production; trade capitalists， traders， brokers， bankers） 2） the unproductive administrative aristocracy recruited from the same strata （the top bureaucrats of the capitalist state， generals， archbishops， etc。）3） the bourgeois entrepreneurs as the organizers and directors （managers of trusts and syndicates， the “operators” of the industrial world， the top engineers， the inventors directly connected to the capitalist world）4） the skilled bureaucrats—civilian， military， and clerical 5） the technical intelligentsia and intelligentsia in general （engineers， technicians， agronomists， veterinarians， doctors， professors， lawyers， journalists， most teachers， etc。） 6） the officers7） the well-off peasantry 8） the middle and， in part， petty urban bourgeoisie9） the clergy， even the unskilled kind。The punishments included censorship， forced labor， suppression of strikes， takeover of property， confiscation of produce， and confinement in concentration camps。 （The Gulag was already open for business）。Then there was the death of Lenin and the ascension of Stalin。 In the early 1930's there was the Great Famine that cost the lives of millions of people， and in the late 1930's the Show Trials of the Old Bolsheviks， such as Nikolai Bukharin， that ended in execution。 What was supposed to be heaven on earth had become Hell。In the author's epilogue， he traces the life of a survivor， author Yuri Trifonov。 His father was a Red Army officer who was arrested and shot in 1938 （and "rehabilitated" in 1955）。 Trifonov's mother spent years in a labor camp for not denouncing her husband。 （She was also rehabilitated in 1955）。 Author Yuri Trifonov died in 1981。 Though I had not heard of Yuri Trifonov， the year of his death stands out to me。 I took several courses on Russian history and Soviet Politics in college。 Part I of this book was mostly new to me， but the rest of it was very familiar。 I recall that one day， when it would be around the time of a Trifonov's death， a guest speaker came to the Soviet politics class I was in。 He was an expert on the Soviet economy。 He explained to us that the Soviet Union could no longer feed its people and it was only a matter of time before it collapsed。 And， indeed， it did。 A tragic， but fitting coda to the disastrous Bolshevik experiment that went terribly wrong。 。。。more

Alexandra ，

Лучшее， что я читала о русской революции。 Объясняет многое в том числе про поколение наших родителей。 Рекомендую

Ondrej Urban ，

It is a tiny bit ironic that I got this book on communism during a trip to Atlanta with a colleague that had not been to the US， with whom we first enjoyed a 3000+ calorie brunch and then marveled at the size of the bible section in the local Barnes&Noble。 I had been planning on getting it for a while - I like big books and I cannot lie， har-har - and finally got to actually reading it during my prolonged holiday I was lucky enough to arrange when changing jobs。The House of Government is about t It is a tiny bit ironic that I got this book on communism during a trip to Atlanta with a colleague that had not been to the US， with whom we first enjoyed a 3000+ calorie brunch and then marveled at the size of the bible section in the local Barnes&Noble。 I had been planning on getting it for a while - I like big books and I cannot lie， har-har - and finally got to actually reading it during my prolonged holiday I was lucky enough to arrange when changing jobs。The House of Government is about the communism - how it started， how it succeeded and how it failed。 It covers all of that even though it really ends at around the time that the WW2 reached the USSR - afterwards it's apparently been more or less gliding along until its inevitable crash。 IT almost succeeds it making the actual House one of the characters - which is a thing I like a lot， making an environment more than just a set。 But it's mostly about the people， young idealists envisaging a better world and succeeding in getting a chance of creating it。 Even though they personally might have never doubted the'd get quite as far， looking "from the outside" makes one wonder how the hell they actually managed。The number of characters is really the only downside of the book - one （me） easily gets lost in them。 While in fiction you need to strive for good characterization since that is the only way your readers can distinguish your characters， here - being real people - you can theoretically always refer to other histories to remind yourself who is who。 I don't know whether that is just my impression but it would have been better to get to know the individual people better。When reading the House of Government， get ready for philosophy， high brow topics discussing systems of government and philosophies behind them。 But also be prepared for the mundane - inventorizing furniture， watching people spend weekends in the nature or eating dinners at the end of the day。 As is advertised， you'll spend a lot of time looking at the lives of the soviet elite through their highs and lows。 You'll get ideas why it all worked and why it inevitably failed， how the terror could grab you at any point and how people made do through all this。This is not a book for everyone and it probably should not be your first history of the communism。 But once you've put in the work， you can't really go wrong expanding your horizons with Yuri Slezkine。 。。。more

Patrick ，

Slezkine tells the story of the Russian Revolution as a millenarian tragedy。 Whatever you think about the conceptual apparatus， this is worth reading for the life stories alone。 In addition to the leading lights of the revolution， you meet others like Trotskyist Tania Miagkova， whose letters from exile， the Verkhneuralsk isolator prison， and the camp are at once heartbreaking and confounding。 At once a mother， wife， and revolutionary， she poured over Marxist-Leninist-Stalinist classics in her ce Slezkine tells the story of the Russian Revolution as a millenarian tragedy。 Whatever you think about the conceptual apparatus， this is worth reading for the life stories alone。 In addition to the leading lights of the revolution， you meet others like Trotskyist Tania Miagkova， whose letters from exile， the Verkhneuralsk isolator prison， and the camp are at once heartbreaking and confounding。 At once a mother， wife， and revolutionary， she poured over Marxist-Leninist-Stalinist classics in her cells， while worrying about ensuring a happy childhood for her daughter。 She falls apart before the reader's eyes as successive letters detail loose teeth， falling hair， and disintegrating clothes。 Despair overtakes her at moments， but her revolutionary ardor pulls her back。 Her ultimate fate， predictable。Back in Moscow you meet the young genius and childhood companion of Iurii Trifonov， Lyova Fedotov。 Perhaps even more than Miagkova， Fedotov took to heart Bolshevik calls for self-improvement。 He sought to master both knowledge of the creative and scientific realms through regular daily study and frightful winters by never wearing a heavy coat。 We learn from his diaries that he even predicted the major arcs of the Eastern Front of WWII。 Only in his belief that the Soviet Union would never surrender Kiev was he mistaken。 Young Fedotov disappeared in the fog of war in 1943。There are so many more remarkable and disturbing individuals in these pages。 Live and remember。 。。。more

миша сафронов ，

Сильная книга。 Голоса， слова， письма， документы - соединяются в образы людей， времени， событий。

Anastasiya ，

огромная работа， внутри которой автор и его идеи иногда оказываются погребены под обилием непрерывно продуцируемых метафор。 но это очень спокойный рассказ об огромной трагедии， в котором авторское имхо удобно отделяется от того огромного количества живых отдельных разных людей， которые хотя бы на страницах книги - живые люди， а не фарш

Ubiraven ，

Удивительные люди были революционеры。 Самые благородные помыслы и жуткие действия， местами на сюрреализм похоже。

Pat ，

Not for a casual reader。 Slezkine's history is ，like the former Bolshevism he writes about， beyond ambitious。 Intensely，insanely detailed， almost in a stream of consciousness technique， dense with parables， allegories， philosophical musings， stuffed past the brim with personal anecdotes， literary analysis， terrible deeds， and head-shaking stupidity， reading this book is like falling directly into the rabbit hole of the 1917 revolution。 You know the ending but the torturous tunnels you traverse k Not for a casual reader。 Slezkine's history is ，like the former Bolshevism he writes about， beyond ambitious。 Intensely，insanely detailed， almost in a stream of consciousness technique， dense with parables， allegories， philosophical musings， stuffed past the brim with personal anecdotes， literary analysis， terrible deeds， and head-shaking stupidity， reading this book is like falling directly into the rabbit hole of the 1917 revolution。 You know the ending but the torturous tunnels you traverse keep you traveling and hoping for daylight， sooner than later。 One wonders what cosmic joke the universe intended by having Stalin and Hitler live at the same time。If life indeed is a circle， we are certainly spinning into a similar absurdity。 。。。more

Michele ，

Un libro-mondo， un incredibile excursus storico e umano。 Non fatevi spaventare dalle dimensioni titaniche， ne vale la pena。 L'autore è un genio。 Complimenti anche alla traduzione。 Un libro-mondo， un incredibile excursus storico e umano。 Non fatevi spaventare dalle dimensioni titaniche， ne vale la pena。 L'autore è un genio。 Complimenti anche alla traduzione。 。。。more

Marsha Altman ，

A master piece analysis of the original Bolsheviks of the Russian Revolution as a messianic cult， similar to Judaism and very early Christianity。 The author takes us through the lives of the intellectuals who came into power through their copious writings， both published works and personal correspondences， then lost power and were killed or exiled during the Stalinist purges of the late 1930's。 The author is himself a fantastic writer， and goes on fascinating tangents that end up being important A master piece analysis of the original Bolsheviks of the Russian Revolution as a messianic cult， similar to Judaism and very early Christianity。 The author takes us through the lives of the intellectuals who came into power through their copious writings， both published works and personal correspondences， then lost power and were killed or exiled during the Stalinist purges of the late 1930's。 The author is himself a fantastic writer， and goes on fascinating tangents that end up being important thematically。 I'm only knocking off a star because there was so much quoting of personal diaries and letters and speeches in this book that if you trimmed them you could still have a great book and cut the book down by a third， and it's a thousand pages long， so that might have been a good idea。 If you cut them out entirely， which would hurt the book， it would be half as long。 Also there is a large cast of characters and Russian names are difficult， especially since they change not only with marriage but other circumstances and they all have nicknames for each other。 I had the same trouble with Tolstoy's War and Peace。 。。。more

Надежда Носкова ，

Серьёзная книга。 История большевизма， его трагедия и последствия его фанатизма。 Не "-человек это звучит гордо"， а-человек это страшный зверь， когда им овладевает идея облагоденствовать человечество。 И фанатизм， лишающий разума。 Серьёзная книга。 История большевизма， его трагедия и последствия его фанатизма。 Не "-человек это звучит гордо"， а-человек это страшный зверь， когда им овладевает идея облагоденствовать человечество。 И фанатизм， лишающий разума。 。。。more

Tema Frank ，

Interesting stories of people at the core of the Revolution （and those they lived with）。

John Braden ，

Exhaustive and exhausting。 Over the course of 1000 pages I'd say half really zinged for me， for example， the show trails， the need for scapegoats and why people eventually confessed to crimes they never committed。 Not always from torture。 Harrowing。 And you do get the chart the lives of a lot of people from their childhood through to the Gulag or grave。 A monumental work。 Just don't drop it on your foot。 Exhaustive and exhausting。 Over the course of 1000 pages I'd say half really zinged for me， for example， the show trails， the need for scapegoats and why people eventually confessed to crimes they never committed。 Not always from torture。 Harrowing。 And you do get the chart the lives of a lot of people from their childhood through to the Gulag or grave。 A monumental work。 Just don't drop it on your foot。 。。。more

Anatoly Bezrukov ，

Три книги современных авторов， затрагивающие историю русской революции， вышли за относительно недавнее время， все три получили достаточно широкий отклик， и все три - увы！ - мне в целом не понравились。 Это "Империя должна умереть" Зыгаря， "Ленин。 Пантократор солнечных пылинок" Данилкина и вот теперь "Дом правительства" Слёзкина。 Хотя на фоне первых двух книга Слёзкина， пожалуй， наиболее качественная。Главная моя претензия к книге заключается в том， что огромное количество материала， переработанног Три книги современных авторов， затрагивающие историю русской революции， вышли за относительно недавнее время， все три получили достаточно широкий отклик， и все три - увы！ - мне в целом не понравились。 Это "Империя должна умереть" Зыгаря， "Ленин。 Пантократор солнечных пылинок" Данилкина и вот теперь "Дом правительства" Слёзкина。 Хотя на фоне первых двух книга Слёзкина， пожалуй， наиболее качественная。Главная моя претензия к книге заключается в том， что огромное количество материала， переработанного автором， не складывается в единую и цельную книгу。 Из "Дома правительства" можно было бы сделать несколько книг， и каждая из них была бы безусловно интересной， но всё вместе утомляет и подавляет。 Три пласта: "семейная сага" жильцов дома， исследование большевизма как секты， и литературоведческое исследование не складываются в единое повествование。 Постоянно возникает ощущение， что автор всё время отвлекается на что-то （то на описание истории реформации в Европе， то на описание процессов о ритуальных убийствах в США， то ещё на что-то， не имеющее прямого отношения к делу）。 Если бы Слёзкин сконцентрировался на чём-то одном: на препарировании большевистского сектантства с точки зрения религиоведения， или на сведении воедино воспоминаний жильцов дома， или на литературоведческом анализе - было бы здорово。 Но всё вместе （да ещё и при таком объёме книги - около 1000 страниц） не складывается。 Возникает ощущение， что у автора огромное количество интересного материала， которым он очень хочет поделиться и в связи с этим не может решиться выбросить что-то или оставить на потом。 Отсюда масса необязательных деталей и подробностей， отступлений от темы и т。п。 А в остальном - хорошо。 Конечно， идея， что большевизм в частности и социализм вообще - это религия или секта， высказана ОЧЕНЬ задолго до Слёзкина。 В части культурологического исследования ему тоже многие могут дать фору （Эткинд， например， да тот же Дм。 Быков）。 Но при всём при этом хороший язык， широкий взгляд， общая эрудиция - всё это подкупает。 В общем， хорошая книжка， которая стала бы значительно лучше， если бы она превратилась в несколько。 。。。more

James Spencer ，

One of the most unusual works of history I have ever read but in the end， one of the best。 Slezkine tells the story of the "Old Bolsheviks，" i。e。 the true believers who eventually carried out the October Revolution and brought the Communists to power。 He tells this story through the lives of the residents of a huge apartment complex built for the Communist leadership， beginning with their lives as revolutionaries， running through their family lives in the House of Government and then to Stalin's One of the most unusual works of history I have ever read but in the end， one of the best。 Slezkine tells the story of the "Old Bolsheviks，" i。e。 the true believers who eventually carried out the October Revolution and brought the Communists to power。 He tells this story through the lives of the residents of a huge apartment complex built for the Communist leadership， beginning with their lives as revolutionaries， running through their family lives in the House of Government and then to Stalin's massive purges of 1937 which killed most of the Old Bolsheviks and brought to an end what Slezkine sees as the millennial sect which they believed in。 He does so mostly through their own writings including literary analysis and in the end concludes that Russian Communism was a one generation phenomenon as their children turned to a different literature。 。。。more

Lisajean ，

Beautifully researched and quite interesting。 As with The Jewish Century， I find Slezkine’s style overblown。 Cutting the book by 200-400 pages would also have made it much more readable。

Eric ，

I did really like the work， but felt that 45 hours is a lot of time to invest。 The fact that we have a new generation of people desiring a socialist scheme for America should probably not surprise us。 Those who saw Bolshevism as a grand future for Russia probably looked around at what was wrong with imperial Russia and， living in the lap of Muscovite luxury， dreamed big for their country because all their close friends and acquaintances seemed to be doing so well in the "house of government" （a I did really like the work， but felt that 45 hours is a lot of time to invest。 The fact that we have a new generation of people desiring a socialist scheme for America should probably not surprise us。 Those who saw Bolshevism as a grand future for Russia probably looked around at what was wrong with imperial Russia and， living in the lap of Muscovite luxury， dreamed big for their country because all their close friends and acquaintances seemed to be doing so well in the "house of government" （a real place） right up until Uncle Joe marched them off to the camps。 Only later did their surviving contemporaries realize the likely inevitability of what came to pass， and it took decades for the mistake of Soviet communism to be set on a corrective path which remains stubbornly entrenched in the likes of Putin and his cronies。There were some truly humorous vignettes buried in the tome， for example the realization that all this coddling of the elites was extremely expensive， but who would tell them 'no！' And the life of an elite sounds good， but having to re-design the weeks of the year made me think immediately of the French revolution - I guess gulags and guillotines both start with the letter 'g'。 。。。more

B ，

It is totally disingenuous to ping this book as "read，" but I think I deserve credit for the limping I was able to do。 The House of Government was name-dropped in an article I was reading。 After skimming a book jacket that promised "A vivid account of the personal and public lives of Bolshevik true believers。。。 [the] conversion to Communism and。。。 children's loss of faith and the fall of the Soviet Union，" I was on board， and reserved it from our newly re-opened library。 I don't know much about It is totally disingenuous to ping this book as "read，" but I think I deserve credit for the limping I was able to do。 The House of Government was name-dropped in an article I was reading。 After skimming a book jacket that promised "A vivid account of the personal and public lives of Bolshevik true believers。。。 [the] conversion to Communism and。。。 children's loss of faith and the fall of the Soviet Union，" I was on board， and reserved it from our newly re-opened library。 I don't know much about Russian history; now's a good as time as any to learn。 My first shock was being handed a book so thick you could easily concuss someone with it。 I hadn't looked at the page count， and so wasn't expecting such a magnum opus， despite a comparison to Tolstoy that that same book jacket had made。Then I opened it。The first part was all about geography and societal set-up。 It reminded me of Victor Hugo; you want to get to the meat of the story， but he just wants to tell you about flying buttresses for 20 pages。 However， I appreciated that Yuri Slezkine wanted to paint a rich picture of the living conditions pre-revolution， so my eyes marched forward。The second part was entirely about religion。 I had absolutely 0 interest in this， and blatantly skipped that part。The third part started to get into what I would call "the good stuff:" the tsar is overthrown， etc。 But Slezkine is writing the driest recounting of history here， and feels the need to provide names and backgrounds for the hundreds of players in the social and political spheres。 He also assumes a certain level of background knowledge on the part of his readers， which is laughable when you remember he spent 50 pages on fucking Christianity。 I couldn't do it。 Life is too damn short。 I returned the book to the library。I am positive that this book is a banger for some people。 I know， for instance， that the 1K+ paged book The Brontes isn't devoured by others like it was by me。 But， unfortunately， I'm just not enough of a Russian history nerd to have the pre-requisites to follow this story， nor do I have the patience to slog through the type of minutia in which Slezkine seems to excel。 This book is written for some one（s） out there。。。 but it ain't me， babe。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=La casa eterna

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=La casa eterna&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,La casa eterna&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0