More than 40 of the world's leading specialists on Russian politics, a third of them Russians, make this a comprehensive and authoritative guide to political institutions and processes in Putin's Russia.

INSTITUTIONAL DESIGN ; THE PRESIDENCY AND POLITICAL LEADERSHIP ; THE LEGISLATURE AND THE LAW ; ELECTIONS AND THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM ; PROBLEMS OF PARTY FORMATION AND CONSOLIDATION ; ECONOMIC REFORM: POLITICS, INTERESTS, AND SOCIAL CONSEQUENCES ; PUBLIC OPINION, POLITICAL BELIEFS, AND THE MASS MEDIA ; RUSSIAN STATEHOOD AND THE NATIONAL QUESTION ; FEDERALISM, REGIONALISM, AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT ; RUSSIA AND THE WORLD ; THE RUSSIAN TRANSITION IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE ; IS RUSSIA BECOMING A DEMOCRACY?

This is a carefully winnowed collection of some of the best articles - Western and Russian - from the second half of the decade ... the selection of the articles and their grouping into twelve sections was a rigorous process. ...The book's aim is to give students of Russian politics easy access to a wide range of material that might otherwise have escaped their attention. In this it succeeds admirably ... Moreover, Archie Brown's introduction to the volume and to each section, as well as his concluding chapter, would make a worthwhile book in themselves.' International Affairs, Oct 2001 'This is an excellent reader bringing together papers from a wide variety of sources. It will be widely used by teachers and students of contemporary Russian politics.' THES, November 2001 'As a collection of key, previously published articles and specially commissioned chapters, Brown creates an extremely comprehensive and expertly detailed book. Many of the previously published articles come from notable Russian journals that would otherwise not be accessible to English-speaking readers....This book should indeed furnish the shelves of any student of Russian politics....It is, very probably, the most comprehensive and the most educative book on Russian politics currently on the market.'Jen Tracy, former reporter for the 'Moscow Times' and special issues editor of the online journal 'Transitions Online.' 'Students of Russia's transition have received the solid and comprehensive reader they have long been waiting for, thanks to the outstanding efforts of Archie Brown... If Russian policymakers charting the course of further transition were to make this volume their reader, they would certainly save the country a lot of trouble.' Journal of Peace Research 'In itself Brown's volume is clearly one of the most comprehensive and high-quality volumes available for the classroom today.' Mark A. Cichock, Political Studies, Vol 50 No. 4

A unique Reader which brings together outstanding published work on Russian politics with 15 new articles specially written for this collection Editorial introductions to every section (totalling 25,000 words) provide the student with essential background information, detailing the historical development, contemporary relevance, and current debates for each topic area and each individual chapter The most comprehensive book on Russian politics - covering institutional design, elections, parties, federalism, regional politics, presidency and legislature, economic reform and economic interests, foreign policy, public opinion, the mass media, and prospects for democracy Forty chapters by expert contributors of whom one-third are Russians; each article has been carefully edited to ensure the book is student-focused throughout Analysis of major recent developments, including the Duma election of 1999, the Presidential election of 2000, and the institutional changes launched by President Putin

Archie Brown is Professor of Politics at Oxford University and Director of the Russian and Eurasian Studies Centre at St Antony's College, Oxford, where he has been a Fellow since 1971. His book, The Gorbachev Factor, won the W.J.M. Mackenzie Prize of the Political Studies Association of the UK for best political science book of its year and was also joint winner of the Alec Nove Prize for best book on Communism, Post-Communism, or Russia. Professor Brown was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1991 and is currently Chair of its Political Studies Section.

A unique Reader which brings together outstanding published work on Russian politics with 15 new articles specially written for this collection Editorial introductions to every section (totalling 25,000 words) provide the student with essential background information, detailing the historical development, contemporary relevance, and current debates for each topic area and each individual chapter The most comprehensive book on Russian politics - covering institutional design, elections, parties, federalism, regional politics, presidency and legislature, economic reform and economic interests, foreign policy, public opinion, the mass media, and prospects for democracy Forty chapters by expert contributors of whom one-third are Russians; each article has been carefully edited to ensure the book is student-focused throughout Analysis of major recent developments, including the Duma election of 1999, the Presidential election of 2000, and the institutional changes launched by President Putin