Portrait of a Russian province : economy, society, and civilization in nineteenth-century Nizhnii Novgorod /

In contrast to common perceptions of the Russian countryside as backward and lagging far behind western Europe, Evtuhov (Georgetown) presents a mid- to late-19th-century history of the Nizhnii Novgorod province in Russia as a vibrant, complex, and changing region that was not vastly different from other parts of rural western Europe. With a focus on the research and activities of local intelligentsia, Evtuhov examines the formation of a provincial identity through the contemporary promotion of regional culture and history. Her work adds a significant contribution to an emerging trend in Russian historical scholarship (such as the work by Robert Geraci, Window on the East: National and Imperial Identities in Late Tsarist Russia, CH, Feb'02, 39-3549), which seeks to examine the periphery, instead of simply the center, as integral to understanding the Russian empire as a whole. The book's structure will be useful to students, as each chapter tackles important topics in Russian imperial history such as religion, administration, commerce, environment, and cultural life. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. M. Chakars Saint Joseph's University