Putin

Richard Sakwa's "Putin: Russia's Choice" is the best book in English on Putin's presidency by one of the world's leading authorities on contemporary Russian politics. Sakwa's analysis of Putin is sympathetic but he is not blind to the many problems and failures that have marred Russia's progress away from the chaos of the Yeltsin era. Sakwa cuts through the hype of the pro- and anti-Putin camps to weigh up both the degradation of democracy under Putin and the possibilities for democratic evolution. Importantly as the end of Putin's second presidential term nears Sakwa allows us a glimpse of how Russia might develop beyond Putin and, perhaps, without him. Neil Robinson, University of Limerick, Ireland Richard Sakwa's latest book is the best short text in print on Russian politics in the Putin era. It presents Putin as a Jacobin state builder and on the whole as an effective reformer, but does not spare criticism or analysis of Putin's and Russia's many contradictions. I cannot think of a better starting point for understanding Russian and Eurasian politics in the second post-communist decade. Timothy Colton, Harvard University, USA In this second edition of his classic analysis of Putin's Russia, Richard Sakwa again challenges those who are too quick and willing to condemn the Soviet president as anti-democratic and a traditional autocratic Russian leader. Sakwa writes in his usual deceptive style -- his prose is clear and might initially appear straightforward, but in fact conveys highly sophisticated and complex arguments. This book will not appeal to simplistic souls who want to see the world in black-and-white, 'good guys and bad guys' terms. Rather, it will attract those who can handle complexity and contradictions -- the reality of politics, whether in Russia or anywhere else. And it will appeal to those who want a deeper understanding of the leader of one of the world's most significant states, one that is becoming increasingly influential again in world affairs. Leslie Holmes, University of Melbourne, Australia