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One Steppe Beyond: Across Russia in a VW Camper
Traveling across the former Soviet Union is a challenge at the best of times—doing so in a dilapidated VW is just that much more of an adventure A chance job offer at a timber yard in Estonia gives Thom and his old pal Jo a taste for the unknown. So when Uncle Tony asks them to drive to Vladivostok for another job, they can’t think of a good reason why not. The result is a classic caper across the former Soviet Union in Max, a rusty old VW camper. Knowing little of the language or the geography ahead, they embark on probably the longest commute ever, encountering corrupt officials, film star mechanics, and over-friendly gangsters. Far off the tourist trail, they bear witness to the collapse of one nation and the birth of a new one during the free-for-all that was Russia in the 1990s.
320 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2011
3 people are currently reading
86 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
October 5, 2013
Basically a diary of Thom's trip across Russia (and associated countries) from Moscow to Vladivostok in a VW Campervan. Considering the epic nature of the journey, there's nothing particularly gripping about the book - it was interesting enough to finish but there was precious little detail or description of the various areas. Whole towns are dismissed in a sentence and there's not really either humour or drama in many of their escapades.
April 22, 2016
I gave up. Boring. Attempts at humour fell flat. So descriptive but none of the story was really interesting or engaging at all. Maybe would have been good as a blog with photos and videos...
December 23, 2016
The thing about Russia is that it's really, really huge. So to write a book about driving across Russia in a campervan is as ambitious as ... well .... actually driving across Russia in a campervan. Thom Wheeler has tackled both with aplomb. He and his partner, Jo, drove from Tallinn, in Estonia, to Vladivostok, a journey of some 10 000km, in Max, their VW campervan.
I visited Tallinn a couple of years ago, and Poland and E Berlin while they were still under Soviet rule, but have never been to Russia so I was really keen to read this book. I was also enticed by the images on the cover. The campervan, the gigantic vodka bottle, the Communist red star and the Kremlin, all in muted colours, reminiscent of the Soviet era, promised to be an interesting read.
This is not a 'personal' narrative; Thom Wheeler has taken a journalistic approach to condense their mammoth journey into just under 300 pages. The book has a wealth of research behind it and is strongly focused on facts and history about the places en route and associated historical figures. The factual stuff is sometimes presented descriptively, in a different font to make it stand out, and other times, in bite-sized chunks of bullet-pointed information, eg: 'Some Facts about Ivan the Terrible' or 'Some Famous Natives of St Petersburg.' I found this presentation of factual information very easy to digest, as it slotted in nicely with the shift from glittering St Petersburg, across the wild interior and Siberia, to the relatively modern port of Vladivostok in the east.
This is an enjoyable and informative read if you're thinking of undertaking a similar journey or would like interesting snippets of Russian history with occasional flashes of humour.
I visited Tallinn a couple of years ago, and Poland and E Berlin while they were still under Soviet rule, but have never been to Russia so I was really keen to read this book. I was also enticed by the images on the cover. The campervan, the gigantic vodka bottle, the Communist red star and the Kremlin, all in muted colours, reminiscent of the Soviet era, promised to be an interesting read.
This is not a 'personal' narrative; Thom Wheeler has taken a journalistic approach to condense their mammoth journey into just under 300 pages. The book has a wealth of research behind it and is strongly focused on facts and history about the places en route and associated historical figures. The factual stuff is sometimes presented descriptively, in a different font to make it stand out, and other times, in bite-sized chunks of bullet-pointed information, eg: 'Some Facts about Ivan the Terrible' or 'Some Famous Natives of St Petersburg.' I found this presentation of factual information very easy to digest, as it slotted in nicely with the shift from glittering St Petersburg, across the wild interior and Siberia, to the relatively modern port of Vladivostok in the east.
This is an enjoyable and informative read if you're thinking of undertaking a similar journey or would like interesting snippets of Russian history with occasional flashes of humour.
April 3, 2019
Thom Wheeler and his old pal Jo leave the UK in the late 90s to come to Estonia at the behest of Thom's uncle Tony. Uncle Tony imports lumber from the former USSR and has a contact give Thom a "job". The job doesn't last very long, falling victim to outdated poorly maintained machinery and a culture of work that dictates that workers do anything but. On the spur of the moment, Tony tells the pair to look up an old buddy of his in Vladivostok who just might have something going.
Luckly, Thom and Jo actually have a means to get to Vladivostok, a beat up VW camper van named Max.
In spite of the fact that it was nearly a 6,000 mile drive, and neither Thom nor Jo spoke a word of Russian, they were game. It was, in many ways, the ideal time to visit the far reaches of the Russian empire. It was amazingly safe, the people they encountered along the way were generally helpful, if not given to explanations, (You will come with us' could either lead to a silent glass of champagne or to an hour-long interrogation by the police.) and the Russians, after 70 years of Communism were able to fix virtually everything that went wrong with long suffering Max.
Luckly, Thom and Jo actually have a means to get to Vladivostok, a beat up VW camper van named Max.
In spite of the fact that it was nearly a 6,000 mile drive, and neither Thom nor Jo spoke a word of Russian, they were game. It was, in many ways, the ideal time to visit the far reaches of the Russian empire. It was amazingly safe, the people they encountered along the way were generally helpful, if not given to explanations, (You will come with us' could either lead to a silent glass of champagne or to an hour-long interrogation by the police.) and the Russians, after 70 years of Communism were able to fix virtually everything that went wrong with long suffering Max.
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April 21, 2025I can’t decide if they were young, foolish, and lucky to get out of it alive or brave adventurers. The author has a keen interest in all things Russian and this shows in the text with many interesting insights into the Russian way of thinking, especially so soon after the breakup of the Soviet Union. His relationship with Jo survived the journey and I cannot help wondering what happened next, are they still together, did the campervan (the third ‘person’ in the journey), survive or go great scrapyard in the sky. They must be glad they did it when they did because such a journey would be impossible in 2025.
August 14, 2022
Very dissapointing book about a trip right through the former Soviet Union. It takes until a very long time before both travellers become interested in the country the views and the trip as a means in itself. The woman is hardly described at all and I still don't know their relationship. I really wanted this to be as nice as other titles from this publisher. But it simply isn't. It's very expensive nowadays as well online. Don't bother.
June 27, 2018
nonfiction; travel memoir (1997 Russia).
Sometimes droll but mostly dull; the journey from one end of the continent to the other somehow progresses without going anywhere--lacks narrative and character.
Sometimes droll but mostly dull; the journey from one end of the continent to the other somehow progresses without going anywhere--lacks narrative and character.
May 12, 2020
I was really struggling with this book- it just lacked color to me- didn’t grab me at all and I had a hard time getting to the end. Interesting topic and cool journey but the book just didn’t grab me.
March 22, 2023
The trip is about this it looks like in van is going to Soviets union in Russia that's they do anything it is people that they have fun they do everything that Russians do do just drink vodka Yeah it's book is amazing Amazing you shouldn't your read it?🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🍾🍾🍾🍾🍾☢
September 21, 2023
impulse pick up from the library. Promised more than it delivered. I enjoyed the last 20 pages the most. People who do this sort of things are gob-smackingly brave. It sounds an amazing achievement and I wondered whether to believe it but I do.
November 11, 2024
I don't agree with a lot of the negative reviews. I found it highly readable and very interesting, giving a well rounded insight into the Russian people, landscape and culture. Highly recommended.
October 5, 2015
Another entrant in the stunt journey, 'I traversed the Andes by means of unicycle and an angry yak', category of travel writing. The trouble with this style is that the narrative is easily overwhelmed by the need to recount the technical and mechanical aspects of the journey at the expense of relating what the traveller saw, and this book proved to be very much a case in point. Each town is rather sketchily described, giving the impression that Russian settlements are pretty much interchangeable. Whilst this may be factually accurate it did not make for a very engaging narrative. There were also several instances of vehicle breakdown which were easily resolved and lacking in the tension which could have made the book more involving.
I did wonder whether the author had used various fictional elements in the book in an attempt to give the narrative more substance, the whole reason for the journey seeming rather unlikely for example. This aspect of the book reminded me of Stalin's Nose by Rory Maclean and was similarly unappealing to me. Exaggerating for comic effect is fine, but pure fiction should be billed as such.
Interspersed amongst the travelogue Wheeler has rather clumsily placed some summaries of Russian history and culture of the type commonly found in guidebooks. These parts were acceptable but contained no earth-shattering revelations or great insights. Wheeler was also accompanied by Jo, a lady without a surname. By the end of the book I was as much in the dark about her character as her full name. Apart from the fact the she was a vegetarian, used mainly for a lame attempt at humour, she seems strangely colourless, so much so that it was easy to end up doubting her existence.
After thousands of miles stuck in second gear (metaphorically) the author eventually came to the end of his journey. The narrative was wrapped up rather rapidly with the author making no attempt to explain whether the journey had affected his views on the country at all. It felt as if Wheeler was eager to conclude the whole thing. As a reader I was relieved to have finished this rather dull slog through the steppes.
I did wonder whether the author had used various fictional elements in the book in an attempt to give the narrative more substance, the whole reason for the journey seeming rather unlikely for example. This aspect of the book reminded me of Stalin's Nose by Rory Maclean and was similarly unappealing to me. Exaggerating for comic effect is fine, but pure fiction should be billed as such.
Interspersed amongst the travelogue Wheeler has rather clumsily placed some summaries of Russian history and culture of the type commonly found in guidebooks. These parts were acceptable but contained no earth-shattering revelations or great insights. Wheeler was also accompanied by Jo, a lady without a surname. By the end of the book I was as much in the dark about her character as her full name. Apart from the fact the she was a vegetarian, used mainly for a lame attempt at humour, she seems strangely colourless, so much so that it was easy to end up doubting her existence.
After thousands of miles stuck in second gear (metaphorically) the author eventually came to the end of his journey. The narrative was wrapped up rather rapidly with the author making no attempt to explain whether the journey had affected his views on the country at all. It felt as if Wheeler was eager to conclude the whole thing. As a reader I was relieved to have finished this rather dull slog through the steppes.
November 10, 2015
Thom and girl named Jo drive from Estonia to Vladivostok in a VW camper in 1991, just after the fall of the USSR. The book is fast paced, informative about scenery and headlines in history and the reader is interested in their personal stories to boot. He seems a bit reckless, or scatterbrained, to head out rather ill prepared on such an adventure, but is rescued on several occasions by good-hearted Russians (one guy towed their broken down van a hundred miles to a garage.) I went on line to get more info on some of the places he visited since descriptions of place were generally thin, but even so, I like the guys writing style and plan to read some of his other books. I
July 15, 2013
Though the trip took place over a decade ago, the book didn't seem especially dated to me. Instead it was a snapshot of the country outside the major cities, showing both the good in all of the assistance they received from strangers, as well as the bad in the menace from the authorities. I am sensitive to anti-Americanism in such books, feeling that there was a bit of it in his depictions of Americans he encounters -- as though all Brits naturally behave like something from a Masterpiece Theatre production.
November 30, 2015
Two English friends take a spontaneous, rather scatterbrained road trip from Estonia to Vladivostok in an old VW camper van. It's 1997 and times in post-Soviet Russia are still pretty good about a year before the crash of the ruble. The author is not a profound observer of people or landscape, and neither Brit knows any Russian, which limits their understanding of what they see and the people they meet. But I enjoyed reading it. I came away with my respect for ordinary Russian people further confirmed.
January 26, 2014
Lots of humour in this very personal account of a camper van odyssey from Estonia to Vladivostok. It doesn't exactly encourage such an enterprise, mind you, and I doubt the Russian tourist board will be adding it to any recommended reading lists. However, there is lots of interesting stuff here — disappearing roads and eccentrics galore. The diary-style narrative is peppered with witty asides on history, culture and statistical oddities and the writing is lively and engaging.
October 10, 2011
enjoyed this travelogue of jo, thom and the main character Max the vw camper van as they travel across mid 1990's russia starting in estonia across the border into russia and its an insight into early capitalism russia through its culture, places and some of the character they meet along the way
May 29, 2012
Nothing special about the book's premise. Just a well presented story about travelling across Russia.
October 11, 2014
Not brilliantly written, but an interesting story about probably the first person to drive a camper van across Russia
April 21, 2017
One Steppe Beyond is a travel book recounting the author's experience of travelling across Russia in a Volkswagen Camper Van after initially securing a chance job at his uncle's timber yard in Estonia. It's not the most memorable travel book of all time, but it's full of interesting and amusing anecdotes and reflections on the trip, and will be particularly enjoyable for anyone who likes a good road trip and is interested in visiting the region. 6/10
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews