Maria Konyukova
| Nablyudaya za Russkimi | Watching the Russians Non-fiction. Feniks Publishers. Moscow 2011. 312 pages |
| Foreign rights: | Netherlands |
Konyukova’s “Watching the Russians” is not just an enjoyable guide to everyday life in Russia, full of self-irony, it is also a perceptive and also very practical guide book for a fundamental understanding of a country whose representatives we now no longer encounter only in Russia itself but all over the world, as tourists on holiday, as colleagues at work or as neighbours. What forms the basis of our judgements – both positive and negative – and our prejudices? Konyukova examines not only the culturally coded differences in all aspects of life but also explains the chaotic store of Russian emotions in all possible life situations. She is thus effortlessly able to dispense with some of the misunderstandings or, alternatively, to evoke a humorous understanding for the quirks of the Russians. The intention of Konyukova’s book it neither to preach nor to convert, instead providing a cheeky but affectionate insight into the Russian soul, a soul that, traditionally, has always been the mirror and the aspiration of the western soul. In the end this does also make Konyukova’s book something of a mini-guide book to humanity in general.
The author writes of her book: “In her book ‘Watching the English’ Kate Fox pays a great deal of attention to the unwritten rules governing the conduct of the English. Fox’s book is recommended reading for anyone coming to England with the intention of interacting with the local population. As I read her indeed very interesting portrayals, I became more and more afraid... it became clear to me: I would need to learn a great many rules by heart prior to visiting the mists of Avalon so as not to put my foot in it when in elegant company... Oh God! Dear foreign readers of my book! Take heart! Russian life is not governed by such innumerable rules of behaviour to be observed without exception by anyone wanting to make a good impression. With us everything is far more unpredictable, much more spontaneous and is based to a much greater extent on the intuition of those who enter into communication, their moods and their emotions.”
Some of the chapter headings: Rules of the Game or How to Play it Safe, At Work, At Play, The Intelligentsia and The Nouveau Riche, Emigration, Greenhorn, Corruption, Man and Wife, Parenting, Russian Cuisine, Dachas and Banjas, Housing, Money, The Battle for Better Rights and Better Living Conditions, Patriotism, All Nations are Equal but Some are More Equal, Russia and the West, St Petersburg and Moscow, Dealing with the Past.
