Introduces the cooking and food habits of Russia, including such recipes as beet soup or borscht, stuffed pastries or pirozhki, and beef stroganoff; also provides brief information on the geography and history of the country.

After the fall of communism, Russia was in a state of shock. The sudden and dramatic change left many people adrift and uncertain--but also full of a tentative but tenacious hope. Returning again and again to the provincial hinterlands of this rapidly evolving country from 1992 to 2008, Susan Richards struck up some extraordinary friendships with people in the middle of this historical drama. Anna, a questing journalist, struggles to express her passionate...