The Possessed: Adventures With Russian Books and the People Who Read Them

The Possessed: Adventures with Russian Books and the People Who Read Them

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4.9/5
1,558 RATINGS  |  883 REVIEWS

The Possessed: Adventures With Russian Books and the People Who Read Them

The Possessed: Adventures with Russian Books and the People Who Read Them

4.9/5
1,957 RATINGS  |  740 REVIEWS

Description: No one who read Elif Batuman’s first article (in the journal n+1) will ever forget it. “Babel in California” told the true story of various human destinies intersecting at Stanford University during a conference about the enigmatic writer Isaac Babel. Over the course of several pages, Batuman managed to misplace Babel’s last living relatives at the San Francisco airport, uncover Babel’s secret influence on the making of King Kong, and introduce her readers to a new voice that was unpredictable, comic, humane, ironic, charming, poignant, and completely, unpretentiously full of love for literature. Batuman’s subsequent pieces—for The New Yorker, Harper’s Magazine, and the London Review of Books— have made her one of the most sought-after and admired writers of her generation, and its best traveling companion. In The Possessed we watch her investigate a possible murder at Tolstoy’s ancestral estate. We go with her to Stanford, Switzerland, and St. Petersburg; retrace Pushkin’s wanderings in the Caucasus; learn why Old Uzbek has one hundred different words for crying; and see an eighteenth-century ice palace reconstructed on the Neva. Love and the novel, the individual in history, the existential plight of the graduate student: all find their place in The Possessed. Literally and metaphorically following the footsteps of her favorite authors, Batuman searches for the answers to the big questions in the details of lived experience, combining fresh readings of the great Russians, from Pushkin to Platonov, with the sad and funny stories of the lives they continue to influence—including her own. We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers. To get started finding The Possessed: Adventures With Russian Books and the People Who Read Them, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed. Our library is the biggest of these that have literally hundreds of thousands of different products represented.

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GENRES
True Crime Young Adult Classic Literature Historical Fiction Business Graphic Novel Psychology

Page

296

Format

PDF, EPUB & Kindle Edition

Published

2010

Publisher

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Language

eng

Original Title

The Possessed: Adventures with Russian Books and the People Who Read Them

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Ratings & Reviews

Jonathan Wright
Jonathan Wright October 14, 2025
Not bad, learned a few things.
Abigail Rodriguez
Abigail Rodriguez August 05, 2024
A brilliant work that keeps you engaged every page.
James Walker
James Walker December 05, 2024
Great ideas though some parts felt detailed.
Aaron Carter
Aaron Carter January 04, 2025
Good structure and pacing.
Christopher Jackson
Christopher Jackson September 29, 2025
This book truly stands out among others in its category.
Christopher Jackson
Christopher Jackson March 20, 2025
The author did an outstanding job explaining complex ideas clearly.
Kevin Perez
Kevin Perez January 26, 2024
I learned so much and enjoyed every chapter.
Grace Adams
Grace Adams January 12, 2025
Great ideas though some parts felt detailed.
Victoria Roberts
Victoria Roberts July 13, 2024
Great ideas though some parts felt detailed.
Lily Scott
Lily Scott December 27, 2025
I learned so much and enjoyed every chapter.
Sophia Martinez
Sophia Martinez March 09, 2025
Remarkably well-structured and thoughtfully written.
Jason Turner
Jason Turner March 05, 2024
Helpful and informative.
Jonathan Wright
Jonathan Wright October 18, 2025
The author did an outstanding job explaining complex ideas clearly.
Mia Moore
Mia Moore August 21, 2025
A powerful story that stays with you long after reading.
Jason Turner
Jason Turner February 27, 2025
This book truly stands out among others in its category.
Andrew Thompson
Andrew Thompson January 22, 2024
A brilliant work that keeps you engaged every page.
Adam Campbell
Adam Campbell April 06, 2024
This book truly stands out among others in its category.
Joseph Clark
Joseph Clark June 29, 2024
Great ideas though some parts felt detailed.
Zoe Phillips
Zoe Phillips April 01, 2025
I learned so much and enjoyed every chapter.
Adam Campbell
Adam Campbell August 15, 2025
I learned so much and enjoyed every chapter.
Jason Turner
Jason Turner April 26, 2025
Enjoyed reading it overall.
Mia Moore
Mia Moore March 11, 2025
Enjoyed reading it overall.
Anthony Young
Anthony Young February 28, 2025
I learned so much and enjoyed every chapter.
Grace Adams
Grace Adams May 08, 2024
The author did an outstanding job explaining complex ideas clearly.
Lily Scott
Lily Scott January 14, 2024
Worth reading for sure.
Avery King
Avery King May 04, 2025
Helpful and informative.
Elizabeth Allen
Elizabeth Allen April 06, 2024
It completely changed my perspective.
Victoria Roberts
Victoria Roberts December 07, 2024
An exceptional piece of work.
Harper Lee
Harper Lee December 09, 2024
Interesting and motivating.
Emily Johnson
Emily Johnson January 12, 2025
Interesting and motivating.
Samantha Edwards
Samantha Edwards September 14, 2024
The author did an outstanding job explaining complex ideas clearly.
Joshua Harris
Joshua Harris July 10, 2024
Helpful and informative.
Charlotte Martin
Charlotte Martin November 30, 2024
Interesting and motivating.
Lily Scott
Lily Scott January 02, 2024
Average but still worth reading.
Anthony Young
Anthony Young March 08, 2025
The author did an outstanding job explaining complex ideas clearly.
Natalie Parker
Natalie Parker September 15, 2024
Good structure and pacing.
Sophia Martinez
Sophia Martinez July 12, 2024
An unforgettable reading experience from start to finish.
Eric Evans
Eric Evans February 14, 2025
A brilliant work that keeps you engaged every page.
Matthew Anderson
Matthew Anderson January 14, 2024
Some chapters were stronger than others.
Olivia Davis
Olivia Davis February 01, 2025
A powerful story that stays with you long after reading.
Joseph Clark
Joseph Clark August 19, 2024
Good structure and pacing.
Michael Brown
Michael Brown December 12, 2024
A brilliant work that keeps you engaged every page.
Victoria Roberts
Victoria Roberts December 05, 2025
Good structure and pacing.
Chloe Nelson
Chloe Nelson October 18, 2024
Very informative yet entertaining at the same time.
Evelyn Garcia
Evelyn Garcia March 02, 2024
Remarkably well-structured and thoughtfully written.
Justin Baker
Justin Baker February 23, 2025
A brilliant work that keeps you engaged every page.
Jason Turner
Jason Turner May 04, 2025
The author did an outstanding job explaining complex ideas clearly.
Evelyn Garcia
Evelyn Garcia May 27, 2024
Very good book with useful insights.
Michael Brown
Michael Brown June 23, 2025
An exceptional piece of work.
Michael Brown
Michael Brown March 05, 2024
Would recommend it.
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