In Siberia - by Colin Thubron (Paperback)

About the Book

Traveling alone, the author explored the Siberian territory, talking to everyone he met about the state of that country. What he found was a land whose natural resources have been savagely exploited for decades, a terrain tainted by nuclear waste, but filled with citizens who demonstrated hospitality despite their poverty.

Book Synopsis

As mysterious as its beautiful, as forbidding as it is populated with warm-hearted people, Syberia is a land few Westerners know, and even fewer will ever visit. Traveling alone, by train, boat, car, and on foot, Colin Thubron traversed this vast territory, talking to everyone he encountered about the state of the beauty, whose natural resources have been savagely exploited for decades; a terrain tainted by nuclear waste but filled with citizens who both welcomed him and fed him--despite their own tragic poverty. From Mongoloia to the Artic Circle, from Rasputin's village in the west through tundra, taiga, mountains, lakes, rivers, and finally to a derelict Jewish community in the country's far eastern reaches, Colin Thubron penetrates a little-understood part of the world in a way that no writer ever has.

Review Quotes

?What a relief after all the cheerful travel books and brave adventure stories! A small human voice that makes the dark woods pulse with magic.?--"Los Angeles Times Book Review?Thubron is a sensitive, observant traveler who clearly respects the Siberians for the hardships they have endured. . . . In Siberia places the region in its historical context, but Thubron's history is never didactic or potted. Above all, Thubron is never a travel bore. . . . Readers may derive a great deal of travel envy from this account of his adventures.?--"New York Times Book Review "Thubron proves again why he is considered one of the most affecting travel writers today with this graphic, melancholy portrait of Siberia. . . . From each locale he pries a nugget--a lasting personal tale or memory he passes to the reader like a gift. . . . Thubron's prose poetry is abrupt, frugal, and glinting. . . . And if Siberia is slippery, what he has caught is treasure enough.?-- "Kirkus Reviews?You might not want to journey to the vast tundra of Siberia, but Colin Thubron takes you there with a lyrical poignancy that paints vivid images in your mind and makes your heart ache. . . . If modern America troubles you, "In Siberia will give you evocative encounters with another world and reason to be grateful for your own.?--"USA Today?Many adventurers plunge into Siberia in search of untrammeled roads or unspoiled grandeur; only a handful bring with them a significant knowledge of the land's history, geology and wildlife. Even rarer are those who relay the experience as magically as does this award-winning author. . . . Only his tender treatment of Siberia's enchanting characters and extraordinary natural beauty brightenwhat would be an otherwise dark and desolate path.?--"Publishers Weekly (starred review)?Thubron's ability to see, feel, analyze, to blend the present and the past, makes "In Siberia more than a travel book. His keen eye, like a great photographer's, sees more than an image; he captures the essence of Siberia.?--"Chicago Tribune?No single book can capture the enormity or the ?otherness? of Siberia, but this one comes close. Thubron's travel books and novels have been widely appreciated for years in Britain, and it's easy to see why. Through language that is alternately exuberant, poetic, and mournful, Thubron evokes the natural beauty of Siberia as well as its despoliation.?--"Booklist (starred review)?In this powerful, final volume of his trilogy on the Asian continent ("Where Nights Are Longest, The Lost Heart of Asia), veteran travel writer Thubron traverses all points of the compass in Russia's vast, sparsely settled Wild East. . . . [His] well-researched, moving account is a testament to the hardships endured by Sibera's people and their ability to turn their backs on history, look to the future, and whistle a hopeful tune.?--"Library Journal?Now comes a third book in this extraordinary series of Russian travelogues. Siberia! . . . Thubron approaches his great theme through language. Page after page contains examples of the exact word needed to convey observation. . . . He wanted to find some unity or shape to human destiny, and he has done so. Fear of Russia is a thing of the past, and pity for the living and the dead instead fills this book with the purpose and beauty of prayer.?--"National Review?A cinematically evocative, often heartbreaking account of one of the world'swildest, loveliest places--and one of its worst vacation destinations.?--"Newsweek?Thubron fuses history with politics, ethnography with geography, cultural anthropology with social psychology to demarcate what Siberia was and is, literally and metaphorically. . . . This challenging, self-contained volume warms to the task of paying tribute to the coldest inhabited place on Earth. . . . Thubron's descriptive authority and all-encompassing breadth are palpable.?--"Houston Chronicle"The journey depicted was lonely and grueling, the writing so fine that it is like a long meditation, with perfect tonality. Besides conveying both the beauty and ugliness of an inknown quadrant of the earth, Thubron employes the travel genre to show us exactly how those in the Gulag suffered. I could never really picture what the Gulag "looked" like until I read this book."-- Ryszard Kapuscinski, Author of "Imperium"A fascinating book! Once again, Colin Thubron has proved his mastery, his unique talent for reaching exceptional places and extraordinary people. Thanks to him we encounter a world which, in its beauty and awe, exceeds our imagination."-- Robert D. Kaplan, author of "Balkan Ghosts: A Journey Through History?On the short list of great contemporary travel writers . . . Colin Thubron ranks very high.?-- "Boston Sunday Globe?[Thubron] paints a fascinating picture of [Siberia's] culture, wildlife, and natural beauty.? -- "American Way