Review Unlike so many books that stress Peter's foreign policy, Bushkovitch's Peter the Great focuses on domestic and cultural reforms and Peter's struggle with conservative aristocratic opposition. Concise and tightly argued, this book sets forth the myriad contexts in which Peter acted--Muscovite tradition, seventeenth-century cultural change and late Baroque Europe--and analyzes the key reforms. By focusing on power and political reform, Bushkovitch brilliantly demonstrates the logic that drove Peter's incessant drive to europeanize Russia. (Nancy Kollmann)In this brief and easily digestible biography, Bushkovitch captures the essence of Peter's powerful personality--his physical strength, his ceaseless curiosity, and his indomitable will. Unlike several of Peter's earlier biographers, Bushkovitch downplays his subject's image as a lone-wolf modernizer; rather, he asserts that Peter often acted in concert with many of his supposedly reluctant nobles. This well-written survey of the life of an important, dynamic, and often frightening ruler should encourage general readers to delve deeper into the subject. (Booklist)It is Bushkovitch's incisive analysis of Peter the Great's relations with his aristocracy that sets this volume apart from other books on the subject. By demystifying the achievements of Russia's greatest ruler, Bushkovitch distills the complex personal politics of westernization for the general reader. It should serve as the standard introduction to Peter the Great for years to come. (Leckey, Colum)A dramatic, clear, and engaging portrait of Russia's great emperor and his policies... An original and convincing explanation of Peter's reforms of Russian government..... (Jane Burbank)This is an exciting book that will provide readers with a very different look at early 18th-century Russia. Bushkovitch illuminates the complexities of reform and aristocratic politics during the last years of Alexis Mikhailovich as well as during the reigns of Tsar Fyodor and the regency of Sofia Alexeevna. The scholarship is excellent and it contains new material on the role of the great aristocrats during this period. Bushkovitch's direct and clear writing style is appropriate for all audiences from the least to the most sophisticated. He has the ability to convey the most interesting information in a clear and sensible manner. (Alexandra S. Korros)A dramatic, clear, and engaging portrait of Russia's great emperor and his policies... An original and convincing explanation of Peter's reforms of Russian government. (Jane Burbank) Read more About the Author Paul Bushkovitch is professor of history at Yale University. Read more
J**R
Not for the general reader
I found this book to be disjointed and difficult to read. The sentences were awkward, and I detected several grammatical errors throughout the book that could potentially confuse the reader (they confused me!) The first half of the book centered on Russian politics and aristocracy; Peter didn't play much of a role until the latter part of the text. Even then, the chronology was confusing. Daughters that had never been mentioned suddenly got married; Peter died in one chapter, while his military strategy was described in the next, along with somewhat random details of his death that had been previously left out. Perhaps it's my lack of familiarity with Russian history, but I had great difficulty telling who was who and what happened when within the biography. In addition, it was rather boring in the beginning. However, the book did do a good job of providing the reader with a mostly unbiased view of Peter and the Russia he ruled, as well as an understanding of the political machinations of his day. All in all, I wouldn't recommend it for general readers.
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