A Terrible Country is the story of Andrew/Andrei, who was born in Moscow and immigrated to the United States as a child. Now an adult , he leaves New York to return to Russia to care for his 80-something-year-old grandmother. The book follows Andrei and his struggles to acclimate, but, mostly, it’s about conditions in Russia.

If you like intellectual discussions regarding Russian politics and philosophies, Socialism, Revolution, Capitalism, Marxism, Fascism, Anarchism, the pros and cons of government versus private education, public housing, failed enterprises, and more, then this is the book for you.

ATC is brilliantly written and, although I admit to skimming over some of those discussions mentioned above, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this candid story about life in Russia. I followed along with Andrei’s challenges as he cared for his aging grandma, finally found hockey games to play along in, formed friendships, became more comfortable with the Russian language, learned to navigate Moscow and the Russian countryside, and settle in as not-quite-so-foreign.

Thank you to NetGalley and Mr. Gessen for the opportunity to read and review A Terrible Country.

This is a terrific book, with a wonderfully imperfect narrator and his touching relationship with his grandma, and clearly authentic details about Putin era Russia, as well as a less than ecstatic take on US Academia. As a theater critic, I found myself thinking of ways this could be trimmed down and adapted as a play-- not Broadway, but off or off-off Broadway. If you check out the author's bio, this is obviously more than a little autobographical.

I’ve read several reviews about this one online. Nearly all use words like charming and delightful to discribe this book. Unfortunately, for me, it didn’t quite make it to warm fuzzies. This look at Russia through the eyes of a Russian born man who lived most of his life in the US didn’t really dig deeply enough or hit the heartstrings for me. Just ok.

I enjoyed this book about Russia from someone who was born there, lived there for a time, and speaks the language. Reading about the author's Russian grandmother, and his relationship with her, was the highlight of the book for me. His writing was honest, true-to-life, and at times, very entertaining.

The author knows a great deal about Russian literature and expounds, in parts, on famous authors and poets. He gives interesting details about getting around Moscow and how expensive the food, clothing, and alcohol is, as well as, how cold it gets. He also writes about his love for hockey and his friendships with some of the players. He gives readers a good look at what life is like for the average citizen living in Moscow.

I found Gessen's writing to be sensitive, humorous, and richly detailed. A Terrible Country is an interesting and enjoyable read for those readers who like to immerse themselves in other cultures, and learn a little bit about a foreign country.

I savored every word of this beautiful, funny, touching novel One of the best books I have read in a long time. The relationships between Andrei and his grandmother, and Andrei and Russia is so touching. I have long been consumed by Russian history and Russian novels, and this book is both in one. .