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The House by the Dvina: A Russian Childhood
The riveting story of two families separated in culture and geography but bound together by a Russian-Scottish marriage includes the purchase by the author's great-grandfather of a peasant girl with whom he had fallen in love, the desperate sledge journey in the depths of winter made by her grandmother to intercede with Tsar Aleksandr II for her husband, the extraordinary courtship of her parents, and her Scottish granny being caught up in the abortive revolution of 1905. Brought up in Russia but taken on visits to Scotland, Eugenie Fraser marvelously evokes a child's reactions to two totally different environments, sets of customs, and family backgrounds. With the events of 1914 to 1920—the war with Germany, the Revolution, the murder of the Tsar, and the withdrawal of the Allied Intervention in the north—came the disintegration of Russia and of family life. The stark realities of hunger, deprivation, and fear are sharply contrasted with the adventures of childhood. The reader shares the family's suspense and concern about the fates of its members and relives with Eugenie her final escape to Scotland.
335 pages, Paperback
First published October 9, 1984
52 people are currently reading
1895 people want to read
About the author
Eugenie Fraser
4 books8 followersEugenie Fraser was born in Archangel to a Russian father and a Scottish mother. After the family fled to Scotland, she was brought up in Broughty Ferry and later spent most of her life in India with her husband. She died in Edinburgh in 2002.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews
November 29, 2019
The house by the Dvina is a beautifully written memoir about two families separated in culture but bond together by a Russian-Scottish marriage and if I could Recommend one book to read in December then this would be it.
Eugenie Fraser was brought up in Russia and this story recounts her early childhood in Russia. The story begins with the meeting of her parents in Scotland where her mother Nelly meets her father Gherman Scholts a young German Businessman on the street and they young couple fall in love, marry and return to Archangel, a port city near the Arctic Circle where they will begin their marriage together.
I enjoyed this memoir very much, the writing is so imaginative and the scenes painted of Russian Winters are breathtaking. One of the descriptions from the train Journey in the opening chapters which drew me right in was ;
" The everlasting telegraph poles, the stations appearing for a fleeting moment, the neat square stacks of logs piled high on a siding, and always, always the frost. The endless rows of birches, their curly heads silvered by the frost, snow-laden pines standing close together deep in their winter sleep...............…
I was amazed by the story of the journey Eugenie’s grandmother makes to St. Petersburg’s as a young married woman to rescue her husband who is about to be sent to Siberia. This harrowing journey is so well portrayed in the book the you experience every mile of that journey and by the end you wriggle your toes just to check that there is no frost bite.
There is so much in this book , it is filled with stories of Russian life, wonderful Christmas scenes, religious celebrations and much much more.
If you love Russian stories from the early 20th century and want a good book to draw you in and a book where the characters come to life then this is the book for you.
A wonderful re-read to set the scent for the month ahead.
Eugenie Fraser was brought up in Russia and this story recounts her early childhood in Russia. The story begins with the meeting of her parents in Scotland where her mother Nelly meets her father Gherman Scholts a young German Businessman on the street and they young couple fall in love, marry and return to Archangel, a port city near the Arctic Circle where they will begin their marriage together.
I enjoyed this memoir very much, the writing is so imaginative and the scenes painted of Russian Winters are breathtaking. One of the descriptions from the train Journey in the opening chapters which drew me right in was ;
" The everlasting telegraph poles, the stations appearing for a fleeting moment, the neat square stacks of logs piled high on a siding, and always, always the frost. The endless rows of birches, their curly heads silvered by the frost, snow-laden pines standing close together deep in their winter sleep...............…
I was amazed by the story of the journey Eugenie’s grandmother makes to St. Petersburg’s as a young married woman to rescue her husband who is about to be sent to Siberia. This harrowing journey is so well portrayed in the book the you experience every mile of that journey and by the end you wriggle your toes just to check that there is no frost bite.
There is so much in this book , it is filled with stories of Russian life, wonderful Christmas scenes, religious celebrations and much much more.
If you love Russian stories from the early 20th century and want a good book to draw you in and a book where the characters come to life then this is the book for you.
A wonderful re-read to set the scent for the month ahead.
August 2, 2009
Page 225: I really do love the book. Is it b/c I appreciate what Oscar has destroyed? I do not think so! I promise - this is my last quote:
"We spent several days in the convent..... In the refectory sttod long tables with stools placed around them. In the centre of the room, standing at a praying desk, a nun read passages from the Bible throughout the meal. The first course, I remember, was a rich fish soup known as "ukha", with pieces of the fuqh and potatoes floating in it. I might well have enjoyed it if it wasn't that each bowl had to be shared with three and more people. I didn't mind so much sharing the soup with my immediate neighbor, a fresh young nun, but facing me sat an old and not particularly clean-looking pilgrim, who dribbled and loudly smacked her lips...."
That is it. I will not quote any more. I don't want to get in trouble with plagarism! I have NOT added any new pictures of the little rascal Oscar onto my profile photos.
Page 222: You know I really love this book. Well dear little Oscar, my 3 mth old puppy pulled it off the desk and had lots of fun ripping it while I brushed my teetn! Actually I can continue to page 328 of 335. He destroyed the beginning and end of the book. I found the word EPILOGUE. Nothing else is readable of the last 7 pages. Hej, I tell myself I still can read from page 222 to 328 and IT IS ONLY A BOOK! So first I thought I will buy another one, but heck I have it in my head! Maybe somebody can fill me in on the last 7 pages.....
Page 166: A quote that reveals the character of just one in this large, bizarrely wonderful family:
"There was an enormous tiger-like cat whose amber eyes were intently fixed on the numerous squirrels that Uncle Sanya kept. These animals, with their bushy tails, leapt about the furniture, cracked hazelnuts laid out on the table, made little clicking noises and amused themselves by running up and down the walls, tearing off strips of paper."
I am on page 154: I totally love this book. The writing is magnificent. It draws a picture of Russian landscape - the snow sparkles, the bells jingle, the horses' breath are warm on my skin. I would never want to see this as a movie; the pictures the author has drawn for me would be destroyed. The Russian character is vibrantly, poignantly and lovingly depicted. The people with all their charms and faults become real. I keep thinking I should quote some lines - but which do I pick? The ones that interestingly describe a troika, or the sleigh ride down the frozen river and around the island, all bundled up in furs or the kind woman who "no matter where she went or whom she met radiated warmth and affection". No matter what I quote you will not understand unless you read the book! And I think OMG this book, which nobody talks about, was just out there and I just happened to find it. What else am I missing! What luck that I found it. If you have any interest in Russia, read this book. And it NEVER drags.
Just found this in a second hand book store; I was looking for Zemindar by Fitzgerald, which I didn't find! Anyhow this looks actually just as good! I rarely find what I come to look for.
"We spent several days in the convent..... In the refectory sttod long tables with stools placed around them. In the centre of the room, standing at a praying desk, a nun read passages from the Bible throughout the meal. The first course, I remember, was a rich fish soup known as "ukha", with pieces of the fuqh and potatoes floating in it. I might well have enjoyed it if it wasn't that each bowl had to be shared with three and more people. I didn't mind so much sharing the soup with my immediate neighbor, a fresh young nun, but facing me sat an old and not particularly clean-looking pilgrim, who dribbled and loudly smacked her lips...."
That is it. I will not quote any more. I don't want to get in trouble with plagarism! I have NOT added any new pictures of the little rascal Oscar onto my profile photos.
Page 222: You know I really love this book. Well dear little Oscar, my 3 mth old puppy pulled it off the desk and had lots of fun ripping it while I brushed my teetn! Actually I can continue to page 328 of 335. He destroyed the beginning and end of the book. I found the word EPILOGUE. Nothing else is readable of the last 7 pages. Hej, I tell myself I still can read from page 222 to 328 and IT IS ONLY A BOOK! So first I thought I will buy another one, but heck I have it in my head! Maybe somebody can fill me in on the last 7 pages.....
Page 166: A quote that reveals the character of just one in this large, bizarrely wonderful family:
"There was an enormous tiger-like cat whose amber eyes were intently fixed on the numerous squirrels that Uncle Sanya kept. These animals, with their bushy tails, leapt about the furniture, cracked hazelnuts laid out on the table, made little clicking noises and amused themselves by running up and down the walls, tearing off strips of paper."
I am on page 154: I totally love this book. The writing is magnificent. It draws a picture of Russian landscape - the snow sparkles, the bells jingle, the horses' breath are warm on my skin. I would never want to see this as a movie; the pictures the author has drawn for me would be destroyed. The Russian character is vibrantly, poignantly and lovingly depicted. The people with all their charms and faults become real. I keep thinking I should quote some lines - but which do I pick? The ones that interestingly describe a troika, or the sleigh ride down the frozen river and around the island, all bundled up in furs or the kind woman who "no matter where she went or whom she met radiated warmth and affection". No matter what I quote you will not understand unless you read the book! And I think OMG this book, which nobody talks about, was just out there and I just happened to find it. What else am I missing! What luck that I found it. If you have any interest in Russia, read this book. And it NEVER drags.
Just found this in a second hand book store; I was looking for Zemindar by Fitzgerald, which I didn't find! Anyhow this looks actually just as good! I rarely find what I come to look for.
January 6, 2011
I can't say enough about this memoir. It has everything - an intense sense of place and time, an exotic locale, catastrophic events as well as detailed depictions of Russian culture (christenings, name days, Christmases, Easters, the food at these events, the way the household was run, etc.), also the comings and goings of a large extended family (with all their quirks and histories - in both Russia and Scotland) not to mention the household servants, and friends of the family.
As if that weren't enough, Fraser writes with exquisite detail of the Russian landscape, the change of the seasons, and the river which figures in such a large way in all their lives. I was absolutely transported by her picture of winter afternoons spent flying along the frozen river in a horse-drawn sledge. The story of her Babushka as a young wife, very heavily pregnant, making a harrowing and lengthy journey by sledge, barely stopping and sometimes nearly frostbitten, to plead with the Tsar for her husband who had been sentenced to Siberia - also stellar, and only one of the many, many stories in this book.
I loved it, I highly recommend it, I'd read it again. My thanks to Bettie who clued me in to it.
As if that weren't enough, Fraser writes with exquisite detail of the Russian landscape, the change of the seasons, and the river which figures in such a large way in all their lives. I was absolutely transported by her picture of winter afternoons spent flying along the frozen river in a horse-drawn sledge. The story of her Babushka as a young wife, very heavily pregnant, making a harrowing and lengthy journey by sledge, barely stopping and sometimes nearly frostbitten, to plead with the Tsar for her husband who had been sentenced to Siberia - also stellar, and only one of the many, many stories in this book.
I loved it, I highly recommend it, I'd read it again. My thanks to Bettie who clued me in to it.
September 13, 2012
Little House on the Prairie, revolutionary Russia style. Lots of family members and family traditions and momentous events seen through a child's eyes, all made spellbinding by skillful storytelling and the exotic, far-off (by both time and distance) setting.
Reading this book, I was struck by the thought that Europe used to be a much smaller place, metaphorically speaking. The heads of state were all related to each other and Russian kids went to boarding school in Latvia and Helsinki was practically a suburb of St. Petersburg. Fascinating. I realize this book is completely one-sided but I hope I never find out that her memoir was distorted or manipulated beyond the fact that it was written through the lens of the 1980s. I was so fascinated by this woman's story - when was the last time you heard a native English speaker tell you about the time they starved while the Bolsheviks took over their Arctic village? I thought so.
Reading this book, I was struck by the thought that Europe used to be a much smaller place, metaphorically speaking. The heads of state were all related to each other and Russian kids went to boarding school in Latvia and Helsinki was practically a suburb of St. Petersburg. Fascinating. I realize this book is completely one-sided but I hope I never find out that her memoir was distorted or manipulated beyond the fact that it was written through the lens of the 1980s. I was so fascinated by this woman's story - when was the last time you heard a native English speaker tell you about the time they starved while the Bolsheviks took over their Arctic village? I thought so.
October 16, 2024
The House on the Dvina is a delightful memoir written by Russian-Scottish Eugenie Fraser. Jenya was born in her father's home town of Archangel on the Dvina river. As is the Russian custom, Jenya's father Gherman Scholts, brought his new Scottish wife, Nelly, from her home in Broughty Ferry Scotland to live at his home in Archangel, in northwestern Russia. This book spans 1904 to 1920, and so includes the Russian Revolution (1914 to 1917). The extended family of mill owners, lives on an estate belonging to a very upper crust family. Jenya lives with her brother Gherman and cousins in the nursery with, at various times, a Milk Mother, Nanny, Governess and Teacher. In addition to the large main house with several wings, there is a summer house, lodge, gardens, etc.
Jenya grew up in a fairy tale world as part of the Upper Class - Royalty, Landed Nobility and Clergy 12.5% of what was Tsarist Russia. While she had some encounters with the Middle Class 1.5%, which was made up of Merchants, bureaucrats, professionals, and some encounters with the the 4% Working classes: factory workers, artisans, soldiers, sailors, my recollection is that she had few, if any encounters with the Peasants: The 82% - Landed and landless farmers. Given that, she had very little awareness of, or understanding of, the social turmoil that would bring on the Russian Revolution, which she was forced to live through as a child.
We are with Jenya in the flight from Archangel, along with brother, aunt and cousins, following the loss of the family home, and the departure of her beloved Babushka (grandmother). We follow her through the nail biting and perilous trek to Norway.
Eugenie's breathtaking portrayals of Russian winters in Archangel, are beyond description. Experience riding in Troikas, sledging down the snow covered bank and onto the frozen Dvina in winter, and in summers, the Russian bathhouses (banyas), fragrant manicured gardens and children sunning themselves on the huge boulders that lined the riverbank. Readers don't just read of them, but smell them and feel them. Her ability to arouse the senses, is almost unsurpassed.
Jenya grew up in a fairy tale world as part of the Upper Class - Royalty, Landed Nobility and Clergy 12.5% of what was Tsarist Russia. While she had some encounters with the Middle Class 1.5%, which was made up of Merchants, bureaucrats, professionals, and some encounters with the the 4% Working classes: factory workers, artisans, soldiers, sailors, my recollection is that she had few, if any encounters with the Peasants: The 82% - Landed and landless farmers. Given that, she had very little awareness of, or understanding of, the social turmoil that would bring on the Russian Revolution, which she was forced to live through as a child.
We are with Jenya in the flight from Archangel, along with brother, aunt and cousins, following the loss of the family home, and the departure of her beloved Babushka (grandmother). We follow her through the nail biting and perilous trek to Norway.
Eugenie's breathtaking portrayals of Russian winters in Archangel, are beyond description. Experience riding in Troikas, sledging down the snow covered bank and onto the frozen Dvina in winter, and in summers, the Russian bathhouses (banyas), fragrant manicured gardens and children sunning themselves on the huge boulders that lined the riverbank. Readers don't just read of them, but smell them and feel them. Her ability to arouse the senses, is almost unsurpassed.
August 17, 2014
A wonderful and evocatively written book, with great character development, it centers around two families and life in the early 1900s, World War 1 and the Russian Revolution. It tells the story of the author growing up in Archangel, Russia, in a loving, warm and rich-in-tradition family. It gives the reader an amazing insight into what Russia was like back then – the fun, laughter and gaiety associated with a rich and comfortable lifestyle – at least for the author’s family, both Russian and Scottish. An amazingly beautifully written autobiography with vividly painted descriptions of life as lived in the seasons by the River Dvina – one can actually feel the seasons – as spring awakes, giving way to the warmth of summer and the white nights, followed by the autumnal phase leading up to the dark and extreme blustery cold winters. Loved the pictures painted of the winter journeys and the holiday celebrations. The hardships and tragedies that followed were even more starkly felt juxtaposed against the earlier lifestyle. The author and her family and friends undergo extreme hardship, destruction and loss of life, and we experience every feeling of despair and hope -- along with all the characters. A beautiful book – one to read over and over again.
September 6, 2009
This is an engaging memoir beginning with the years leading up to the Russian Revolution to 1920. It is set largely in Russia's Arctic town of Archangel. Because the author is half Russian and half Scottish, it is interesting to see how the two cultures interact. There are many interesting details about family and tradition and about war and revolution. The author has a very simple, matter-of-fact style which makes for easy, yet intriguing reading.
April 2, 2008
This is a fascinating and immensely readable memoir. Eugenie Fraser - born Evgeniya Scholts in Archangel Russia in 1906 the eldest child of Russian father and Scottish mother reveals a world consigned to history books. Samovars, wolves, sledges piled high with furs and packages rushing through the artic winter, women bathing naked in the river unobserved and unmolested, are jst a few of the images that this book leaves the reader with. The realities of war and revolution are described with a sort of childlike matter of factness that is horribly poignant. The House by the Dvina is beautifully recounted story of an unusual family.
March 6, 2014
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 2, 2012
Just arrived from Greece through BM.
A magnificent book by Eugenie Fraser who tell her autobiography in Russia during 1905 and 1920.
Her mother was Scottish and his father is Russian and they live in Archangel, Russia.
As historical background, the author describes the war with Germany, the Revolution, the murder of the Tsar, the withdrawal of the Allied Intervention and how Russian people tried to survive during the starvation period.
The sequel of this book is The Dvina Remains
A magnificent book by Eugenie Fraser who tell her autobiography in Russia during 1905 and 1920.
Her mother was Scottish and his father is Russian and they live in Archangel, Russia.
As historical background, the author describes the war with Germany, the Revolution, the murder of the Tsar, the withdrawal of the Allied Intervention and how Russian people tried to survive during the starvation period.
The sequel of this book is The Dvina Remains
June 10, 2009
I read this marvelous book years ago, but couldn't remember the name - it was in a previous edition (hardbound). The story of the author's childhood in the early years of the twentieth century. Eugenie Fraser grew up in the Archangel area of Russia along the Dvina River and spent periods of time at her mother's childhood home in Scotland. Excellent writing and historical perspective.
January 12, 2017
A memoir that looks like a work of fiction, like a novel.
I liked its structure, which combines a ring structure (the first part) with a lineal one (the rest of the book), and with a good number of flash-backs and some flash-forwards devices. I also liked the descriptions of the nature in relation with the weather through the different seasons of the year, especially those of the river Dvina . The passing of time is also reflected through the fixed celebrations throughout the year: Christmas, Carnival, Lent... Locations, nature and urban spaces in both Russia and Scotland, are very important, too. And very interesting to me the depiction of customs (clothes, means of transport, food, ceremonies, sayings..).
I liked its structure, which combines a ring structure (the first part) with a lineal one (the rest of the book), and with a good number of flash-backs and some flash-forwards devices. I also liked the descriptions of the nature in relation with the weather through the different seasons of the year, especially those of the river Dvina . The passing of time is also reflected through the fixed celebrations throughout the year: Christmas, Carnival, Lent... Locations, nature and urban spaces in both Russia and Scotland, are very important, too. And very interesting to me the depiction of customs (clothes, means of transport, food, ceremonies, sayings..).
April 18, 2018
This book is described as 'riveting'. Well, I think not. The sparsity of dialogue - practically no conversation at all - made it heavy going for starters. This book was written some six decades after the events it describes in such detail, and how the author remembered all those names I cannot begin to imagine. There is something less than convincing about it all.
The only part that was in any way attention grabbing came right at the end when she is making her escape from the hell-hole into which Russia was sinking
The only part that was in any way attention grabbing came right at the end when she is making her escape from the hell-hole into which Russia was sinking
June 20, 2011
A beautiful memoir, full of little joys, big events, and two families amid revolution, war and exile. The writing is excellent and stories will catch you by surprise. Very much recommended.
For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/review/Eugeni...
For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/review/Eugeni...
November 11, 2012
I read this with an interval, probably due to an overkill of Russian literature. I doubt this book would be considered literature, since the author was part Russian, part British. But it is entertaining, also because it is entirely autobiographical. Until recently I did not know the Allied forces had landed near Murmansk and Archangel during part of World War I.
August 11, 2016
It is the story of one Russian girl robbed of her innocence at an early age, a story of survival in a time of turmoil from which even the memories are somewhat meant to be washed away by fate as most are brought six feet under in the silencing presence of their untimely death.
This memoir is Eugenie Fraser's way of living to tell the tale. ☾☯
This memoir is Eugenie Fraser's way of living to tell the tale. ☾☯
July 29, 2018
Nog eens een lekker ouderwets goed verteld verhaal, een autobiografie over een kind van een Russische vader en een Schotse moeder dat haar jeugd doorbrengt in Archangelsk en daar - na een rijkelijk onbezorgd kinderleven - in haar puberteit geconfronteerd wordt met oorlog en revolutie, waardoor de welgestelde familie alles verliest. Prachtig verteld, een boek dat je in één adem uitleest.
March 15, 2016
Beautiful description of northern Russia, it's people and by-gone lifestyle and costumes. For me, it lacked the emotional intensity that many situations deserve. For example, I wasn't grieved when the mother and two children leave Russia behind... I found it a tedious read and wishing to reach the end. On the positive, I learned a lot and this will be helpful in other books about Russia.
July 21, 2011
I actually read her second book, A House by the Hooglie, but couldn't find it on database. Interesting glimpse of days gone by - most interesting element was her comment about trade in India (her husband worked in jute) and how their experience wasn't part of the Empire myth.
August 30, 2014
Author's childhood in Russia in the early 1900's. Her story continues through the revolution and escape to Scotland. Very interesting regarding the changes in Russia at the time - thoroughly enjoyed. Also enjoyed the two follow-ups.
November 26, 2012
Just didn't go anything for me and I'm afraid I gave up.
January 30, 2019
A beautiful memoir of a fairly privileged childhood in Russia just before and during the revolution. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
I read this book twice.
I read this book twice.
February 12, 2022
Обожаю эту книгу!
April 23, 2018
A gem: scion of a wealthy Russian family in Archangel marries the lovely young daughter of a wealthy Scottish "property owner and house factor" - 1905. (In Scotland a house factor is an agent or steward responsible for collecting house rents on an estate.) This couple produces our heroine, Eugenie Fraser https://www.scotsman.com/news/obituar... - she is a hero to me. https://www.amazon.com/House-Dvina-Ru...
The well-to-do lead interesting lives and leave a record. The impoverished? not so much. This is not to say that social injustice is the fault of the youngsters who are born into it. Eugenie has left us a heart-felt book giving an inside look into the revolutionary times of Russia. A look at a joyous lifestyle before it all comes crashing down.
The first half of the book has the feel of a fairy tale. The Great War of 1914 followed by the Bolsheviks rising up against Tsar Nicholas I put an end to that. The dream becomes a nightmare involving desperate flights and hair-raising escapes. Eugenie is an especially talented writer; she breathes life into all the dangers of surviving a subarctic climate. All of that was harrowing enough, without being made even more precarious by the brutality of a civil war.
Page 31: a humorous example of her insight; "Grandfather, determined his daughter should have a wedding worthy of himself ... "
Page 191: "During the great offensive by General Brusilov, ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksei... ) Germany was compelled to withdraw several divisions from the west and so abandon her riposte against the Somme offensive. Brusilov's attack, although effective was prolonged. In sacrificing herself for her allies Russia lost a million men, a loss that undermined her materially and, more significantly, morally. The flame of patriotism which burned in every soldier's breast began to waver and eventually went out. Revolution and anarchy followed." I've always been curious as to how Russia transitioned from being engaged, along with her allies, against the Germans to fighting a bloody war against herself. It was a long and complicated process with disastrous results for any chance at a democratic future. Eugenie's book is worthy on so many levels.
1917: Troops stopped fighting; soldiers deserted; estates were plundered; homes were burned; the owners murdered; army officers were killed out of hand. Archangel was spared the worst until the end although food shortages were severe and every family lost loved ones to the fighting and the resulting diseases.
The well-to-do lead interesting lives and leave a record. The impoverished? not so much. This is not to say that social injustice is the fault of the youngsters who are born into it. Eugenie has left us a heart-felt book giving an inside look into the revolutionary times of Russia. A look at a joyous lifestyle before it all comes crashing down.
The first half of the book has the feel of a fairy tale. The Great War of 1914 followed by the Bolsheviks rising up against Tsar Nicholas I put an end to that. The dream becomes a nightmare involving desperate flights and hair-raising escapes. Eugenie is an especially talented writer; she breathes life into all the dangers of surviving a subarctic climate. All of that was harrowing enough, without being made even more precarious by the brutality of a civil war.
Page 31: a humorous example of her insight; "Grandfather, determined his daughter should have a wedding worthy of himself ... "
Page 191: "During the great offensive by General Brusilov, ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksei... ) Germany was compelled to withdraw several divisions from the west and so abandon her riposte against the Somme offensive. Brusilov's attack, although effective was prolonged. In sacrificing herself for her allies Russia lost a million men, a loss that undermined her materially and, more significantly, morally. The flame of patriotism which burned in every soldier's breast began to waver and eventually went out. Revolution and anarchy followed." I've always been curious as to how Russia transitioned from being engaged, along with her allies, against the Germans to fighting a bloody war against herself. It was a long and complicated process with disastrous results for any chance at a democratic future. Eugenie's book is worthy on so many levels.
1917: Troops stopped fighting; soldiers deserted; estates were plundered; homes were burned; the owners murdered; army officers were killed out of hand. Archangel was spared the worst until the end although food shortages were severe and every family lost loved ones to the fighting and the resulting diseases.
February 16, 2023
I'm a native of Archangel, so for me this book was mind-blowing. Sadly nowadays nobody in Arkhangelsk really knows about the book, that's what statistics say on the same kind of Russian site. Nobody just reads this, my friends don't read books at all...
For those who interested, here are colorized videos of old Archangel, as Eugenie had seen it:
The market
https://youtu.be/UGOD_WM_nVo
Entrence to Archangel after crossing the river
https://youtu.be/KKWSPIgVyDE
The main cathedral and Allied forces
https://youtu.be/wuBMjhK5SiE
https://youtu.be/Eagr7wpkhB0
For those who interested, here are colorized videos of old Archangel, as Eugenie had seen it:
The market
https://youtu.be/UGOD_WM_nVo
Entrence to Archangel after crossing the river
https://youtu.be/KKWSPIgVyDE
The main cathedral and Allied forces
https://youtu.be/wuBMjhK5SiE
https://youtu.be/Eagr7wpkhB0
August 25, 2018
Beautifully written.
January 3, 2021
Very interesting social history of Russian life in the 1910s, during revolution, war, famine and destruction.
December 1, 2025
Couldn’t get into it at all, only managed about half which took me over 2 months lol
July 26, 2017
Eugenie Fraser was born in Russia in 1905. She lived through a difficult era in Russian history as the country went from an autocracy to a communist nation - she lived under Tsar Nicholas II, civil war, and the Bolshevik take over with Vladimir Lenin. Fraser spent most of her young years in Archangel, a city far north of St. Petersburg, on the Dvina River and near the White Sea. She lived a comfortable life with her paternal grandparents. At times she lived with her mother's parents in Scotland.
Fraser shares the joys and troubles of her family in great detail. She was fortunate to have more than enough food, clothing, shelter and love. Her life greatly changed after the Tsar was deposed and the civil war began. At the beginning of the war, her mother took her and her brother to Scotland. Her father thought that the problems might be over so they returned to Russia. It was a bad decision as civil war began to consume their corner of Russia. Grandfather and other male relatives were hauled off to prison. There was an extreme lack of food. Then the military began to confiscate their belongings and force them to share their house with others. At times Fraser and her friends were able to join together and find some enjoyment in life.
In addition to learning about Fraser and her family, I learned about life in a far north part of the world. They had a short summer, and the river was often under ice, but the people were adapted to their area and enjoyed living there.
I chose to read this book to learn how the governmental changes affected the ordinary people in Russia. My Life By the Dvina met my need. Fraser was past middle age when she published her memoir so I did wonder how she could remember so much detail when she was young. But, she tells and interesting and very readable story.
Fraser shares the joys and troubles of her family in great detail. She was fortunate to have more than enough food, clothing, shelter and love. Her life greatly changed after the Tsar was deposed and the civil war began. At the beginning of the war, her mother took her and her brother to Scotland. Her father thought that the problems might be over so they returned to Russia. It was a bad decision as civil war began to consume their corner of Russia. Grandfather and other male relatives were hauled off to prison. There was an extreme lack of food. Then the military began to confiscate their belongings and force them to share their house with others. At times Fraser and her friends were able to join together and find some enjoyment in life.
In addition to learning about Fraser and her family, I learned about life in a far north part of the world. They had a short summer, and the river was often under ice, but the people were adapted to their area and enjoyed living there.
I chose to read this book to learn how the governmental changes affected the ordinary people in Russia. My Life By the Dvina met my need. Fraser was past middle age when she published her memoir so I did wonder how she could remember so much detail when she was young. But, she tells and interesting and very readable story.
April 2, 2014
Wow! I read and loved this memoir on our spring break vacation. With a daughter in Russia and a son in Ukraine, I wanted to learn more about daily life in old Russia. So this book was perfect for me.
Here's the book summary: "The riveting story of two families separated in culture and geography but bound together by a Russian-Scottish marriage includes the purchase by the author's great-grandfather of a peasant girl with whom he had fallen in love, the desperate sledge journey in the depths of winter made by her grandmother to intercede with Tsar Aleksandr II for her husband, the extraordinary courtship of her parents, and her Scottish granny being caught up in the abortive revolution of 1905. Brought up in Russia but taken on visits to Scotland, Eugenie Fraser marvelously evokes a child's reactions to two totally different environments, sets of customs, and family backgrounds. With the events of 1914 to 1920—the war with Germany, the Revolution, the murder of the Tsar, and the withdrawal of the Allied Intervention in the north—came the disintegration of Russia and of family life. The stark realities of hunger, deprivation, and fear are sharply contrasted with the adventures of childhood. The reader shares the family's suspense and concern about the fates of its members and relives with Eugenie her final escape to Scotland."
Highly recommended for anyone interested in life in the Arctic Circle of Russia from 1905-1920.
Here's the book summary: "The riveting story of two families separated in culture and geography but bound together by a Russian-Scottish marriage includes the purchase by the author's great-grandfather of a peasant girl with whom he had fallen in love, the desperate sledge journey in the depths of winter made by her grandmother to intercede with Tsar Aleksandr II for her husband, the extraordinary courtship of her parents, and her Scottish granny being caught up in the abortive revolution of 1905. Brought up in Russia but taken on visits to Scotland, Eugenie Fraser marvelously evokes a child's reactions to two totally different environments, sets of customs, and family backgrounds. With the events of 1914 to 1920—the war with Germany, the Revolution, the murder of the Tsar, and the withdrawal of the Allied Intervention in the north—came the disintegration of Russia and of family life. The stark realities of hunger, deprivation, and fear are sharply contrasted with the adventures of childhood. The reader shares the family's suspense and concern about the fates of its members and relives with Eugenie her final escape to Scotland."
Highly recommended for anyone interested in life in the Arctic Circle of Russia from 1905-1920.
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