All the Clean Ones Are Married

And Other Everyday Calamities in Moscow

By: Lori Cidylo

Write A Review

Paperback | 8 July 2016

At a Glance

Paperback
254 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
21.5 x 13.9 x 1.5

Paperback

RRP $32.99

$32.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $8.19 with

or

Ships in 5 to 10 business days

In 1991, Lori Cidylo shocked her Ukrainian Polish-born parents when she told them she was leaving her reporter's job in upstate New York to live and work in the rapidly dissolving Soviet Union. For the next six years she lived on a shoestring budget in Moscow, in tiny, run-down apartments, coping with the daily calamities of life in Russia. Fluent in Russian, she rode public transportation, did her own shopping and cooking, and shared the typical Musovite's life-unlike most Westerners who were sequestered in heavily guarded compounds reserved for diplomats and journalists. As the country experienced its most dramatic transformation since the Bolshevik Revolution, she realized she had stepped into a fantastical and absurd adventure.

Cidylo's wry, insightful account of what it was like for an American woman living in Russia is a dramatic tale full of insouciant laughter, in which vividness and immediacy shine on every page. With the sharp eye of an acute observer, she captures both the momentous events and the everyday trivia: how do Russians address one another now that the familiar "comrade" is pass; or, how do you find your way home in a city where the streets keep getting new names? As Russia even now continues to struggle with the Cold War's aftermath, Cidylo gives a delightful surprising, warmly human view of post-Soviet life.

Industry Reviews

"A beguiling memoir . . . [Cidylo] serves up amusing slices of Soviet life. . . [E]vocative vignettes of ordinary life."--Kirkus Reviews

"A fascinating glimpse of post-Soviet society during a time of turmoil and drastic change." --Library Journal
"Cidylo's light touch and wry humor make this a distinctive trip, offering insight into both sides of the formerly bipolar world." --Publishers Weekly
"Despite continual frustration with everyday life in Moscow (her search for a washing machine, for example, takes on the fervor of a quest for the Holy Grail), Cidylo retains her sense of humor and makes every effort to adapt. She aptly sums up a foreigner's perspective when she writes, 'Many of us don't realize just how ill prepared for life we are until we arrive in Russia.'" --Library Journal
"The best of this fall's new travel books..." --New York Times Book Review, "Best Travel Books of 2001"

Shipping

	Standard Shipping	Express Shipping
Metro postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Regional postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Rural postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95

Orders over $89.00 qualify for free shipping.

How to return your order

At Booktopia, we offer hassle-free returns in accordance with our returns policy. If you wish to return an item, please get in touch with Booktopia Customer Care.

Additional postage charges may be applicable.

Defective items

If there is a problem with any of the items received for your order then the Booktopia Customer Care team is ready to assist you.

For more info please visit our Help Centre.

More in Memoirs

When We See You Again

Paperback

RRP $34.99

$28.75

18%
OFF

I Choose Me : Chasing Joy, Finding Purpose & Embracing Reinvention - Jennie Garth

RRP $34.99

$29.99

14%
OFF

Mother Mary Comes to Me

Longlisted for the 2026 Womens Prize for Non-Fiction

Paperback

RRP $26.99

$22.99

15%
OFF

Periodic Bitch

Paperback

RRP $29.99

$24.99

17%
OFF

All the Clean Ones Are Married

And Other Everyday Calamities in Moscow

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

More in Memoirs

Detention

A rookie teacher. The toughest prison school in Australia.

Unbothered

The Art of Letting Go to Find Yourself

Is It Too Early To Bitch?

This Is Me

A Reckoning

The Make-Believe

A memoir of magic and madness

Transform Your Pain into Purpose

How to find your voice and make a difference

When We See You Again

I Choose Me

Chasing Joy, Finding Purpose & Embracing Reinvention

Wormhole

Bush Doctor

A memoir from the beautiful, rugged heart of outback Australia

A Different Kind of Power

The internationally bestselling memoir

A Knock at the Door

A homeless man, a lawyer . . . and a family changed forever

Start With Yourself

A New Vision for Work & Life

Ghost Stories

A Memoir - 'What a kind, honest book. What a gift of love' David Mitchell

Famesick

A Memoir

True Crime

A Memoir - the jaw-dropping and moving story of the godmother of forensic crime and creator of Scarpetta

Joyful, Anyway

Finding Delight in Impossible Times

Childhood

A memoir of growing up, parenting, teaching, and discovering what children need most

Marooned

A Memoir of Fandom, Fatherhood, and the Far Side of the World: A Memoir of

Mother Mary Comes to Me

Longlisted for the 2026 Womens Prize for Non-Fiction

Periodic Bitch

Call Girl Confidential

Millions of followers. Hundreds of clients. One hell of a story.

Annastacia Palaszczuk

The Politics of Being Me, from the former Premier of Queensland

Being Patient

Close Encounters in Cancer World

This product is categorised by

Longlisted for the 2026 Womens Prize for Non-Fiction