(The Kremlin, Moscow)

Since February 2022 when Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine a plethora of books have been published or reissued that deal with the mindset of Russian President Vladimir Putin.  The most important include works by  Philip Short, Steven Lee Myers, Catherine Belton, Masha Gessen, Mark Galeotti, Owen Matthews, Luke Harding, Christopher Miller, Serhii Plokhy, Angela Stent, Shaun Walker, and Samuel Ramani.  These authors explore Putin’s rise to power, his Pan-Slavism ideology designed to restore the Kremlin to its previous world power status, his domestic agenda, and the reason behind his invasion of Ukraine.  These monographs are works of non-fiction and rely on intensive research that includes interviews with the relevant personages and scouring available documentation to foster insights and critical viewpoints.  Turning to the fictional genre it has a recent addition to this subject matter with the publication of THE WIZARD OF THE KREMLIN: A NOVEL by Giuliano Da Empoli that attempts to explain Putin’s realpolitik and other aspects of his reign employing the format of a novel.

The central character in Da Empoli’s work is Vadim Baranov, a lover of literature, also known as “the wizard of the Kremlin” who was a television producer before becoming Putin’s political advisor.  After fifteen years at Putin’s side, Baranov decides to escape Putin’s grasp and explain the inner workings of the Russian state where Putin’s sycophants and oligarchs battle for the attention of the Russian Tsar.  Russia finds itself in a dark place because of Baranov’s work as the Kremlin “spin doctor.”  Baranov is ensconced in a system he helped create but realizes he must leave – not an easy thing to accomplish in Putin’s Russia.

(Russian President, Vladimir Putin)

Da Empoli conveys his story by employing Baranov as a conduit for the narrator of the novel.  The novel opens with an unnamed narrator visiting Moscow to research the early 20^th century writer, Yevgeny Zamyatin.  It turns out that Baranov is an admirer of the novelist and through social media the narrator visits Baranov in his remote country house.  As the novel evolves Baranov shares his life story with his visitor moving with energy through Russia in the 1990s to the invasion of Ukraine.

As the Soviet Union comes to an end in 1991 it appears that Russia may be on the verge of some sort of democratic edifice with the end of censorship and a new cultural freedom.  As we know this did not come to pass and Baranov, who resented the new intelligentsia realizes that the future will belong to more practical individuals as a result he will join Putin as a political/media advisor and consummate insider.  In this capacity Da Empoli relates Putin’s rise to power and through dialogue with the Russian autocrat he explains in rather crude form his view of power, how it should be used, and what it can accomplish – the restoration of Russia as a force in the world.

(Russian oligarch, Boris Berezovsky)

Da Emploi’s fictional account borders on reality as he weaves in historical events and characters into his novel.  We are witnessed to Putin’s actions and reactions to the sinking of a Russian submarine in the Barents Sea in which the entire crew drowned; terrorist attacks by Chechen rebels that some believe was carried out by the FSB; employing Putin’s large labrador in a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, knowing her fear of dogs, among many other examples.  Influential figures appear and reappear.  Oligarchs such as Boris Berezovsky, a billionaire who for a time owned ORT the main Russian television station; Mikhail Khodorkovsky, an opposition activist who had owed Yukos, the largest Russian energy company; Igor Sechin, Putin’s Deputy Chief of Staff and energy issues who would eventually take over Yukos; Yevgeny Prigozhin, a gangster who became Putin’s caterer and eventually opponent, and other important individuals.

(Igor Sechin, Putin’s Chief of Staff)

Da Empoli employs a sarcastic sense of humor and a great deal of irony in carrying out his plot as he compares the old Soviet state to the nouveaux riche of the new Russia.  Through Baranov’s autobiography the author offers interesting comparisons of Joseph Stalin and Putin, and descriptions of Russia in the 1990s when it seemed to be on the cusp of some sort of democracy with the present autocracy.  Da Empoli explains the need of the Russian people for stability and unity after the chaos of the 1990s – for Putin this could only be accomplished through raw power, never admitting an error, appealing to Russian nationalism by calling for a restoration of its Soviet Empire, interfering with the internal mechanism of western democracy, and never giving in to those who oppose him.

The author is right on as he parrots Putin’s critique of Russian docility toward the west under Boris Yeltsin.  As Baranov recounts “our docility called for the harshest punishment.  NATO flooded into the Baltic States, and American military bases into central Asia.  The oversight of financial institutions was no longer sufficient; now they wanted to take power directly.  Send us back to the basement and replace us with agents of the CIA and the International Monetary Fund.  First in Georgia, then in Ukraine, the very heart of our lost Empire.”  For Putin, American actions in Ukrainian elections and its move toward the European Union and NATO was the last straw resulting in the invasion.

The book is ostensibly about cunning and the manipulation of reality as Baranov, a wonderful storyteller that the reader falls under his spell.  Baranov uses his prowess of creating a new reality, a vision of Russian specialness, a new national myth, and cultivates grievances against the west carrying out Putin’s mission.  Da Empoli has created an important character to carry out his novel in Baranov, a cynic who possesses sharp political analysis.  His character is loosely based on Vladislav Surkov, a politician and strategist whose Machiavellian approach to politics made him a perfect advisor for Putin as he accompanied him from St. Petersburg to the Kremlin.  The novel succeeds as a work of fiction, but its origin in reality makes you shudder as you read on.

(The Kremlin, Moscow)

(Early 19th century British factory)

For those devotees of Ken Follett’s Kingsbridge series his latest addition will not disappoint.  His new book, THE ARMOR OF LIGHT is the fifth novel in the series and contains elements from earlier Kingsbridge works.  It follows ordinary working people whose lives were altered by historical crises.  Follett introduces inventors that change history and have profound impact on everyone.  Further, it presents the battle for freedom as people fight for lives free of oppression and lastly, Follett develops impactful female characters who play significant roles in the flow of the novel.

Follett is a master storyteller who has a firm grip on historical detail.  The current storyline is set during the Industrial Revolution and relates the tale of a group of intertwined families whose lives are greatly impacted by mechanical and technological change.  Follett’s characters are involved in food riots, worker strikes, and resistance to forced military service.  The English Parliament responds with a series of repressive laws making it a crime to speak out against the government.

The story’s background focuses on the year 1792 amidst what English historian, Eric Hobsbawm describes as the Age of Revolution.  Highlighted by the dual revolutions of industry and ideology in France that commenced in 1789 the story proceeds to the Age of Napoleon as the French dictator launches a series of wars across Europe that will culminate by 1814 with the Congress of Vienna.  The story continues for another ten years with the story concluding in 1824.

(A hand loom weaving)

Follett’s mythical village of Kingsbridge is a center of textile production where work is moving from piece work at home to mills equipped with more productive machinery.  In addition to being forced to work in pseudo-factories, labor must deal with inflation induced by war and a government that is cracking down on dissent.  The propertied classes take advantage of the situation as they control Parliament and make it difficult for workers to unite resulting in low wages, dangerous working conditions, and poor housing.

The story accurately rehashes the plight of English workers at the turn of the 19^th century and their relationship with the new industrial aristocracy fostered by the mechanization of the industrial revolution.  Follett depicts many scenes that correctly replicate historical events.  From attempts at unionization of weavers to government institution of laws preventing workers from combining; the effects of decades of war with France resulting in increasing inflation and poverty for the masses; action and results from the battlefield; the arrest and prosecution of the poor, even hanging a seven year old boy; the press gang of the poor into the Royal navy; the fears of the gentry first, the French Revolution and later the machinations of Napoleon are just a few themes that Follett develops.

(Rioting mob of Luddites)

Of course, as in any of Follett’s historical novels there are a series of characters, some heroes, others villains.  Among those who stand out are Sal Clitheroe and her son Kit.  Sal’s husband dies and she remarries and becomes a leader in trying to organize the weavers.  Jarge Box, Sal’s second husband, a laborer with a temper who loved his wife.  Amos Barrowfield, a clothier who begins engaging in the “putting out” system and graduates to owning his own mills as the novel progresses.  He is in love with a woman he cannot have, and of course there is another woman who is in love with him who he rejects.  The Riddick brothers.  Will who is a self-absorbed nasty person who is also a crook.  Roger, a mechanical genius who supports the workers, lastly, George, who is the Rector of Bradford.  A key individual is David Shoveller, known as Spade, a generous and caring person who works with Sal to help the plight of the poor.  Arabella Latimer, married to the Bishop of Kingsbridge who she deplores and eventually has an affair, a child, and a new marriage!  Henry Viscount of Northwood, a soldier who is married to Elsie, Arabella’s daughter, is also married to a man she does not love and cannot have the man she desires.

As far as villains are concerned we can generalize and state it is the English Parliament, judicial system, monarchy, and the British aristocracy for the most part lacks any empathy for its workers and subjects in general.  It is highlighted by the policies of Prime Minister William Pitt and others who occupied the office.  As for individuals that Follett carefully develops, Alderman Joseph Hornbean stands out as a person who survived extreme poverty as a child including the witnessing of the hanging of his mother.  He goes on to become a very rich and influential mill owner with under the table contracts with the English military to supply uniforms.  He opposes all progress except machines that will make him even wealthier.  Arrest, trials, bribery, hangings are all aspects of things that he is ultimately responsible for.  There are many others that Follett introduces, and he is very successful in developing their personalities and their impact on the evolution of the novel.

(The impact of the Industrial Revolution)

The story is constructed chronologically, and it follows the course of the wars of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars.  Follett has excellent command of the war’s progression and its impact on British society, especially the working poor.  The lifestyle of the aristocratic households is deftly compared to that of the underclass and how certain characters strive for inclusion with the upper classes.  Follett develops a number of important themes, the foremost of which is the precarious nature of work for the poor as mechanization threatens the loss of their livelihood.  Other themes include the schism between Anglicanism and Methodism. In addition, the aristocracy’s fear of the ecumenical revolution fostered by the French and a possible invasion of Britain by Napoleon which would destroy their way of life, and the fear of mill owners of the Luddites who were crossing the country smashing machines.   This is highlighted by the growth of a number of characters highlighted by Sal as she overcomes widowhood to become a leader and spokesperson of the poor and Amos and Spade as they leave their comfort level to take on more responsibility and leadership in Kingsbridge.

(Coal pits and factories)

THE ARMOR OF LIGHT continues Follett’s remarkable success that began thirty-four years ago with the publication of THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH.  Over the decades the series has sold over 27 million copies stunning readers and critics with its rich detail, amazing architectural research, and brilliant storytelling.  THE ARMOR OF LIGHT is written with the author’s gift for personal and political drama creating a story that moves gratifyingly through over 700 pages.  It is so engrossing that you might want to return to the earlier volumes, the first of which appeared in 2007 presenting a saga that covers 800 years and well over 4,000 pages.

As one reads on and you are as Katherine Powers writes in her Washington Post review,  “propelled by acts of highhanded cruelty answered by the resourcefulness and pluck of its victims, a dynamic so predictable that we know that, in most cases, it’s only a matter of time before good triumphs and comeuppance is delivered — whereupon the cycle repeats itself. Yes, we’re being manipulated, but we can’t stop turning the pages: What now? What next? Beyond that, however, it is Follett’s generosity and adeptness with historical detail and nimble depictions of technical matters that set this book, like its predecessors, above mere historical melodrama.”

(Early 19th century British Factory)