Englishwoman Mary McAuley first arrived in Leningrad in the early 1960s, eager to study labor relations for her thesis. Staying at a hostel, she met a number of Soviet students, many born under the rule of Joseph Stalin. Over the half-century that followed, McAuley traced their varying paths and the changing face of the former imperial capital. Remembering Leningrad captures the story of a beautiful city and lifelong friendships. We follow McAuley as she walks through the streets downtown and examines politics in the 1960s, describes the hazards of furnishing an apartment in the 1990s, and learns about the challenges her friends have faced during these turbulent years. By weaving history and anecdotes to create a picture of Russia's cultural center, McAuley underscores the impact of time and place on the Russian intelligentsia who lived through the transition from Soviet to post-Soviet life. The result is a remarkable group portrait of a generation.

Today Russia and human rights are both high on the international agenda. Since Putin returned to the presidency in 2012, domestic developments--from the prosecution of Pussy Riot to the release of Khodorkovsky--and Russia's global role, especially in relation to Ukraine, have captured the attention of the world. The role of human rights activism inside Russia is, therefore, coming under ever greater international scrutiny. Since 1991, when the Russian Federation became an independent state, hundreds of organisations have been created to champion human rights causes, with varying strategies, and successes. The response of the authorities has ranged from being supportive, or indifferent, to openly hostile. Based on archival research and practical experience working in the community, Mark McAuley here provides a clear and comprehensive analysis of the progress made by human rights organisations in Russia--and the challenges which will confront them in the future.

Despite their very different histories, societies, political and legal systems, Russia and the UK stand out as favouring a punitive approach to young law breakers, imprisoning many more children than any other European countries. The book is based on the author's primary research in Russia in which she visited a dozen closed institutions from St Petersburg to Krasnoyarsk and on similar research in England and Northern Ireland. The result is a unique study of how attitudes to youth crime and criminal justice, the political environment and the relationship between state and society have interacted to influence the treatment of young offenders. McAuley's account of the twists and turns in policy towards youth illuminate the extraordinary history of Russia in the twentieth century and the making of social policy in Russia today. It is also the first study to compare the UK (excluding Scotland because of its separate juvenile justice system) with Russia, a comparison which highlights the factors responsible for the making of 'punitive' policy in the two societies. McAuley places the Russian and UK policies in a European context, aiming to reveal how other European countries manage to put so many fewer children behind bars.

In this book Mary McAuley explores the political reactions of elites and society in the Russian Federation in the years following the collapse of communist party rule and the break-up of the USSR. Spanning two republics and four regions, the book offered the first in-depth study of the impact of change in the regions as well as at the centre. Using first-hand research including extensive interviews and personal observation, this book provides a study of the response of a society to the breakdown of the established political order. Mary McAuley traces Russia's search for new identities, institutions, and rules of political behaviour. Her book will appeal to students of comparative politics generally, as well as to all those interested in transition in Russia.

In this book Mary McAuley explores the political reactions of elites and society in the Russian Federation in the years following the collapse of communist party rule and the break-up of the USSR. Spanning two republics and four regions, the book offered the first in-depth study of the impact of change in the regions as well as at the centre. Using first-hand research including extensive interviews and personal observation, this book provides a study of the response of a society to the breakdown of the established political order. Mary McAuley traces Russia's search for new identities, institutions, and rules of political behaviour. Her book will appeal to students of comparative politics generally, as well as to all those interested in transition in Russia.