Red Blues

The twentieth century has witnessed three great waves of Russian immigration to the United States.

The first wave followed the Russian Revolution of 1917.

Joseph Stalin's tyrannical rule was the cause of the second wave during the late 1940s and early 1950s. And then the third wave came, beginning with the age of glastnost and perestroika in the mid-1980s, and continuing to this day. In Red Blues, Dennis Shasha and Marina Shron have brought us a fascinating collection of personal stories told by those who are part of this third wave.

Through their varied lifestyles and experiences these immigrants tell of a common juxtaposition between life in the former Soviet Union, which was materially poor but often culturally and personally rich, with life in the United States, which can be comparatively chaotic and uncomfortable but ultimately offers far greater opportunities. The voices we hear come from a diverse group of personalities who tell their stories with no holds barred.

The reader is given views of both the United States and Russia from a very unusual perspective-the honest words of strong people who have survived in both cultures.