Welcome
to the library!
Here you can learn
about a typical Russian village library and see samples of books that are
bought for them. In addition, you'll find direct access to Russian
literature, music, art, and news. We hope you'll visit often as the library
will continue to expand its resources.
GO TO
CHILDREN'S SECTION
GO TO:
REFERENCE SECTION
RUSSIAN ART
RUSSIAN LITERATURE
RUSSIAN MUSIC
RUSSIAN NEWS
RUSSIAN SEARCH ENGINES
RUSSIAN TRAVEL PROGRAMS
GO TO:
TYPICAL VILLAGE LIBRARY
MYTHS ABOUT COMMUNIST ERA BOOKS
WHY WE BUY BOOKS IN RUSSIA
dictionaries, translation tools, language courses
101. English-Russian dictionaries on-line--
http://ftp.vpcit.ru/cgi-bin/dict/bobo/word (Plain format, excellent
dictionary!)
http://www.rususa.com/dictionary/russian.asp
102. Learning Russian on-line (the basics) --
http://www.friends-partners.org/oldfriends/language/course/school.html
(For small children)
http://www.alphadictionary.com/rusgrammar (Excellent Russian grammar.
Dr. R. Beard)
http://www.russianlessons.net/ (Excellent site)
http://www.learningrussian
103. Translation programs
on-line --
(Do not rely on these program for accurate translations! Language is too
complex for these simple, if progressive, programs.)
http://translation2.paralink.com/
http://www.online-translator.com/text.asp?lang=en
104. Language
learning supplies -- (Sources for books, tapes, CDs, and films)
http://www.pullins.com/ (Excellent company with helpful people to talk
to.)
Russian Impressionism (beautiful
web site) --
http://www.overlandgallery.com/GalleryData/Russian.asp
The Hermitage Museum --
http://www.hermitagemuseum.org
The State Russian Museum, St Petersburg --
http://www.rusmuseum.ru/eng/exhibitions/
19th-20th century Russian art --
http://www.auburn.edu/academic/liberal_arts/foreign/russian/art/index.html
Seventy-five
Famous Russian Painters (an outstanding collection of work) --
http://www.abcgallery.com/countrind.html#Russia
201. Russian Classics in English
--
http://www.classicreader.com (Excellent source for the classics &
author biographies)
http://chekhov2.tripod.com/ (Excellent source of the works of Chekhov)
http://www.online-literature.com/tolstoy (Excellent source for
Tolstoy)
202. Russian Classics in English
and Russian --
http://www.namdar.dircon.co.uk/aaRussian/Lermon/lermon.htm (Works of
Lermontov)
http://www.magister.msk.ru/library/tolstoy/tolstoy.htm (Tolstoy short
stories)
(Scroll down the page to find the English texts)
http://max.mmlc.northwestern.edu/~mdenner/Demo/index.html (Excellent
source of poetry)
203. The classics in Russian only
--
http://itlibitum.ru/library/ (Great Russian authors.)
http://az.lib.ru/t/tolstoj_lew_nikolaewich/ (All the works of Tolstoy)
Music from films with some playable file clips --
http://www.kulichki.com/kinosong/
(If you are learning the Russian language, use these sources to hear news clips and practice reading headlines.)
"Izvestia". Daily print news in
Russian --
http://www.izvestia.ru/
"Radio Free Europe" in Russian --
http://www.rferl.org/realaudio/c4.ram
"Moscow news". Daily print news in Russian --
http://www.mn.ru/
"The New Newspaper". Daily
print news in Russian --
http://novayagazeta.ru/
http://www.yandex.ru
http://www.rambler.ru
Return to top
These links are for people who want something other than a typical tourist
experience.
The first program listed here was highly recommended to us by a
friend. The second program was recognized by the White House under Jimmy
Carter's administration for its excellence. It was nominated in 1992 for the
Nobel Peace Prize. But we have not had first hand experience with either of
these organizations.
http://www.crossculturalsolutions.org/
http://www.friendshipforce.org
301. Classic
Russian Children's Stories --
The Three Questions by Leo Tolstoy
The Tsar and The Shirt by Leo Tolstoy
The Courtyard and The Fence by Zakre
The Violinist by A. Kyznitsov
Vanka by
Anton Chekhov
However small, a Russian village school library is a wonderful place in which to find yourself. The wooden floor creaks its welcome and the worn, narrow aisles beckon you along as down a path leading to adventure. The rows of bookshelves are few. Yet, there is much that makes you feel that you've come for a visit with good friends. You feel a reverence for these simple silent objects that have told their stories so often that their spines are worn through by the hands of children. Some of the shelves are filled, and others not so much. The highest ones are reserved for plants. You cannot successfully bring new books to a place like this without having a respect for the old, or an understanding that all communist-era books were not the teachings of Lenin.
MYTHS ABOUT COMMUNIST ERA BOOKS
Books from the West, that is the classics such as
Shakespeare, Hemingway, and Twain, have not only always been available, but
are well known and respected. It is a myth that these classics were
unavailable in school and public libraries. Almost any Russian child was,
and is, familiar with The Wizard of Oz, Winnie the Pooh,
Peter Pan, and Robinson Crusoe. Their own loved make-believe
character who fills many books and stories is called Kuzya.
Indeed, it is a love and respect for the best books of the past that
has resulted in the teachers and children asking for the best books of our
time. Books are still deeply reverenced in Russia which makes working there
such a pleasure.
Every village library project begins with meetings with the directors of the
school, the librarian, and the teachers who decide themselves what will be
bought for the library. When funds allow, every child in the school is
bought a book of his or her own, again, the children themselves selecting
the books they want. The books run anywhere from $5 to $25 for good,
hardbound editions. We buy encyclopedias, the classics, art and history
books, "how-to" books, as well as English language books with accompanying
cassette tapes.
By far the most requested books are encyclopedias. There are beautiful
encyclopedias on subjects such as astronomy, history, and geology, as well
as on such subjects as How Things Work and Everything About
Everything. Individual encyclopedias are usually 300 to 500 pages in
length and now often come with accompanying CDs. Multiply volume sets are
also available, and are bought as well.
The books are bought in Russia, not only because of our insistence that
the school teachers and staff themselves decide what will be most helpful,
but also because of the language factor and because our work then benefits
the local merchants. We buy only the best quality books, even if that
means buying fewer books and traveling several hours to the nearest big
city. In most cases we are replacing books that are more than 50 years
old. We can only assume that the books we purchase might well be used for
the next 50 years. In any case, they will most certainly be valued at least
that long.