A Kingdom and a Village

A magisterial account of Moscow … gripping and enlightening … At a time when Russia is once again trying to remake the borders of Europe and the nature of politics in the world, Simon Morrison gives us a new way to understand this vast and ever-changing country through its singularly compelling capital city

Ben Rhodes, author of After the Fall

A gem of a book … With vivid writing and an astonishing body of research, Simon Morrison creates a mesmerizing tale of how Moscow came to be’

Jill Dougherty, author of My Russia

A preeminent historian of Russian history and culture, Simon Morrison is the perfect biographer of Moscow, one of the world’s most fascinating and enigmatic cities

Shaun Walker, author of The Illegals

Morrison’s riveting biography of Moscow is breathtaking in its span – covering architecture, music, society, institutions, leaders’ decisions and the ordinary people’s response, and much more. It is also a beautifully written story of Morrison’s personal relationship with Russia that began in 1990 when he visited Moscow for the first time

Nina Khrushcheva, co-author of In Putin's Footsteps

A sweeping history of Moscow that combines taut storytelling with penetrating analysis … Simon Morrison brings to life the contradictory legacies of power, violence and creativity that have shaped the city as a nexus of empire. A timely and indispensable guide for anyone wanting to understand Moscow

Rebecca Reich, Professor of Russian Literature and Culture, University of Cambridge

Russia is more than just Moscow, but it has long been its beating heart – at once bloody and life-giving – and this book captures its progress from insignificant hamlet to modern megalopolis magnificently. Every page pulses with individuals' stories or historical insights, making this a wonderful biography of a city, its rulers and people

Mark Galeotti, author of A Short History of Russia

It takes huge imaginative vision and a deep on-the-ground knowledge of Moscow, acquired over many years, to grasp the full dynamism of the city’s history. But Simon A Morrison has pulled it off. His ambitious, erudite account is vivid and compelling, a wonderful conjuring up of Russia’s great capital in all its beauty, fire and fury

Helen Rappaport, author of The Rebel Romanov