Putin's russia (with a new chapter on beslan)

This is a devastating appraisal of the policies of Russia’s current head of state by the country’s leading radical journalist. A former KGB spy, Vladimir Putin is one of the world’s most enigmatic figures. This is his Russia. Internationally admired for her fearless reporting, award-winning journalist Anna Politkovskaya turns her steely gaze on President Putin and his early regime in this explosive book. From Putin’s tyrannical grip on ordinary citizens to rampant corruption in highest ranks of the government, as well as Mafia dealings, scandals in the provinces and the decline of the intelligentsia, Politkovskaya offers a scathing condemnation of the President and his rule, revealing a shocking state of affairs: soldiers dying from malnutrition, parents requiring to bribes to recover their dead sons' bodies and conscripts are being hired out as slaves. More relevant and important than ever in today’s political landscape, Putin's Russia is both a gripping portrayal of a country in crisis and the testament of an extraordinary reporter. ‘A searing portrait of a country in disarray and of the man at its helm, from the bravest of journalists’ New York Times ‘Anna Politkovskaya is a heroic journalist’ Guardian ‘We will continue to learn from her for years’ Salman Rushdie