Peter the Great: His Life and World - by Robert K Massie (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

PULITZER PRIZE WINNER - An "urgently readable" (Newsweek) biography of the captivating tsar who changed Russian history--from the New York Times bestselling author of Nicholas and Alexandra, The Romanovs, and Catherine the Great

"Enthralling . . . as fascinating as any novel and more so than most."--The New York Times Book Review

Against the monumental canvas of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Europe and Russia unfolds the magnificent story of Peter the Great, crowned co-tsar at the age of ten. Robert K. Massie delves deep into his life, chronicling the pivotal events that shaped a boy into a legend--including his "incognito" travels in Europe, his unquenchable curiosity about Western ways, his obsession with the sea and establishment of the stupendous Russian navy, his creation of an unbeatable army, his transformation of Russia, and his relationships with those he loved most: Catherine, the robust yet gentle peasant, his loving mistress, wife, and successor; and Menshikov, the charming, bold, unscrupulous prince who rose to wealth and power through Peter's friendship. Impetuous and stubborn, generous and cruel, tender and unforgiving, a man of enormous energy and complexity, Peter the Great is brought fully to life.

Review Quotes

"Urgently readable . . . the work of a master of narrative history."--Newsweek

"Written in a style that combines vigor, clarity, and sensitivity . . . should be the envy of historians and novelists alike."--Chicago Sun-Times

"Fascinating . . . an absorbing book."--The Plain Dealer

"Exceptional."--The New Yorker

About the Author

Robert K. Massie was born in Lexington, Kentucky, and studied American history at Yale and European history at Oxford, which he attended as a Rhodes Scholar. He was president of the Authors Guild from 1987 to 1991. His books include Nicholas and Alexandra, Peter the Great: His Life and World (for which he won a Pulitzer Prize for biography), The Romanovs: The Final Chapter, Dreadnought: Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War, Castles of Steel: Britain, Germany, and the Winning of the Great War at Sea, and Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman. Robert K. Massie died in 2019.