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Six Days in Leningrad : A Memoir
The never-before-told story of the journey behind THE BRONZE HORSEMAN, now in print for the first time.
From the author of the celebrated, internationally bestselling BRONZE HORSEMAN saga comes a glimpse into the private life of its much loved creator, and the real story behind the epic novels. Paullina Simons gives us a work of non-fiction as captivating and heart-wrenching as the lives of Tatiana and Alexander.
Only a few chapters into writing her first story set in Russia, her mother country, Paullina Simons travelled to Leningrad (now St Petersburg) with her beloved Papa. What began as a research trip turned into six days that forever changed her life, the course of her family, and the novel that became THE BRONZE HORSEMAN. After a quarter-century away from her native land, Paullina and her father found a world trapped in yesteryear, with crumbling stucco buildings, entire families living in seven-square-metre communal apartments, and barren fields bombed so badly that nothing would grow there even fifty years later. And yet there were the spectacular white nights, the warm hospitality of family friends and, of course, the pelmeni and caviar.
At times poignant, at times inspiring and funny, this is both a fascinating glimpse into the inspiration behind the epic saga, and a touching story of a family's history, a father and a daughter, and the fate of a nation.
'Amazing book! Thank you Paullina for sharing your experience with us all!'- Kiki, Goodreads
From the author of the celebrated, internationally bestselling BRONZE HORSEMAN saga comes a glimpse into the private life of its much loved creator, and the real story behind the epic novels. Paullina Simons gives us a work of non-fiction as captivating and heart-wrenching as the lives of Tatiana and Alexander.
Only a few chapters into writing her first story set in Russia, her mother country, Paullina Simons travelled to Leningrad (now St Petersburg) with her beloved Papa. What began as a research trip turned into six days that forever changed her life, the course of her family, and the novel that became THE BRONZE HORSEMAN. After a quarter-century away from her native land, Paullina and her father found a world trapped in yesteryear, with crumbling stucco buildings, entire families living in seven-square-metre communal apartments, and barren fields bombed so badly that nothing would grow there even fifty years later. And yet there were the spectacular white nights, the warm hospitality of family friends and, of course, the pelmeni and caviar.
At times poignant, at times inspiring and funny, this is both a fascinating glimpse into the inspiration behind the epic saga, and a touching story of a family's history, a father and a daughter, and the fate of a nation.
'Amazing book! Thank you Paullina for sharing your experience with us all!'- Kiki, Goodreads
442 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2013
60 people are currently reading
1591 people want to read
About the author
Paullina Simons
49 books5,415 followersPaullina Simons was born in Leningrad, USSR, in 1963. At the age of ten her family immigrated to the United States. Growing up in Russia Paullina dreamt of someday becoming a writer. Her dream was put on hold as she learned English and overcame the shock of a new culture.
After graduating from university and after various jobs including working as a financial journalist and as a translator Paullina wrote her first novel Tully. Through word of mouth that book was welcomed by readers all over the world.
She continued with more novels, including Red Leaves, Eleven Hours, The Bronze Horseman, The Bridge to Holy Cross (also known as Tatiana and Alexander), The Summer Garden and The Girl in Times Square (also known as Lily). Many of Paullina's novels have reached international bestseller lists.
Apart from her novels, Paullina has also written a cookbook, Tatiana's Table, which is a collection of recipes, short stories and recollections from her best selling trilogy of novels, The Bronze Horseman, The Bridge to Holy Cross, (also known as Tatiana and Alexander) and The Summer Garden.
After graduating from university and after various jobs including working as a financial journalist and as a translator Paullina wrote her first novel Tully. Through word of mouth that book was welcomed by readers all over the world.
She continued with more novels, including Red Leaves, Eleven Hours, The Bronze Horseman, The Bridge to Holy Cross (also known as Tatiana and Alexander), The Summer Garden and The Girl in Times Square (also known as Lily). Many of Paullina's novels have reached international bestseller lists.
Apart from her novels, Paullina has also written a cookbook, Tatiana's Table, which is a collection of recipes, short stories and recollections from her best selling trilogy of novels, The Bronze Horseman, The Bridge to Holy Cross, (also known as Tatiana and Alexander) and The Summer Garden.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
July 31, 2022
Before I start my review, I would like to thank Paullina Simons. It is not everyday that you get to experience just how one of your most beloved stories of all time came to be.
Paullina retells her experience of travelling back to her birthplace, Russia, to find inspiration for the book which is now The Bronze Horseman, and then continued on in TBTC and TSG. She travels with her Papa. What I loved most was Paullina's relationship with her father changing over the course of the 6 days. But also I felt her heartache when faced with the reality of her surroundings. It was bittersweet.
Paullina's love for creme brulee ice cream, and her happy childhood memories of Shepelevo, reminded me too much of a young Tatiana.
I am so happy Paullina has published this story, it takes what you thought you once knew about The Bronze Horseman to a whole new level.
Paullina retells her experience of travelling back to her birthplace, Russia, to find inspiration for the book which is now The Bronze Horseman, and then continued on in TBTC and TSG. She travels with her Papa. What I loved most was Paullina's relationship with her father changing over the course of the 6 days. But also I felt her heartache when faced with the reality of her surroundings. It was bittersweet.
Paullina's love for creme brulee ice cream, and her happy childhood memories of Shepelevo, reminded me too much of a young Tatiana.
I am so happy Paullina has published this story, it takes what you thought you once knew about The Bronze Horseman to a whole new level.
September 18, 2017
This is a priceless read for anyone who's read and loved The Bronze Horseman trilogy. It wasn't the most glamorous or exciting read a lot of the time, but it was well written, emotional and full of meaning. It feels as though we are gazing into the innermost depths of Paullina Simons' soul. It's such a personal look into her life, I can't help but appreciate it and feel vastly privileged to have been given the opportunity to understand who she is and how that transpires into her writing. This really gave me that closure I was in desperate need of after finishing The Summer Garden. This beautiful, intimate recounting of the trip that inspired Tatiana and Alexander's fictional journey is one that will stay with me forever.
November 11, 2016
Favorite Quotes:
In my opinion four people were responsible for bringing down the Berlin Wall and Communism: Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, Pope John Paul II, and my father.
My dad picked some cherries off the cherry tree and ate them. He gave me five. That was my lunch. Gratefully I popped them in my mouth. There were exquisitely sour. When I mentioned this, my dad glared at me, as if I had insulted his cooking.
You don’t understand, Paullina. All the things you want to remember. I want desperately to forget.
As I stood at the foot of the stairs, the faded black and white details of my memory turned to color. Shepelovo had always been a myth to me, but Fifth Soviet was reality, then and now. I trudged up the stairs and became seven years old again.
Go into the woods, do your business. You’ll feel much better… Stop it, you fool. You will have to go in the woods in the end. Go now and end your misery – and ours. You haven’t stopped talking about a bathroom… Go now.
Russia was like a hard dream from which I could not wake up.
My Review:
Reading memoirs is a rare occurrence for me, however, in an effort to expand my horizons and keep those neurons firing, including this genre has been on my goal list. Having read Ms. Simons’s breathtaking and heartbreaking tome of Lone Star last year, I knew this talented author to be a storyteller of the highest order and surmised that if I were to indulge in someone scratching through the muck and emotional detritus of their own story, hers would be the one to select. I can happily boast – I chose wisely. Ms. Simons wrote of her 1998 return visit to the areas of her childhood in St. Petersburg/Leningrad Russia with her father, after leaving at age ten in the 70s. Her revelations and experiences were life altering for her, and eye opening and mind-bending for me. As a self-indulgent American, I had no idea that opportunities and living conditions had remained so stark and limited. I had never considered that a major superpower would view refrigerators, toilets, and running water as conveniences and luxuries or that their populous could shrug at those issues or would consider cleaning their ancient toilets as being a completely unnecessary task.
Ms. Simons’s writing was heaving with colorful insights and entertaining observations of not only the people and places of her travels, but also how the current observations of those people and places collided with her childhood memories of the same. Bonuses included amusing tidbits of her personal exasperation as due to the lack of road signs, indoor plumbing, or eateries, she was often lost, always hungry, frequently suffering from the need to relieve herself, and meeting countless men named Viktor. I enjoyed her personal pictures and found myself Googling the areas she mentioned as I devoured her emotive and transformative tale. Despite the often archaic, dire, and bleak conditions she found, she imparted her narrative with loving care and respect for their experience. I feasted on this meaty tome like a binge dieter hitting the buffet line. I want to read everything this talented scribe has ever written.
In my opinion four people were responsible for bringing down the Berlin Wall and Communism: Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, Pope John Paul II, and my father.
My dad picked some cherries off the cherry tree and ate them. He gave me five. That was my lunch. Gratefully I popped them in my mouth. There were exquisitely sour. When I mentioned this, my dad glared at me, as if I had insulted his cooking.
You don’t understand, Paullina. All the things you want to remember. I want desperately to forget.
As I stood at the foot of the stairs, the faded black and white details of my memory turned to color. Shepelovo had always been a myth to me, but Fifth Soviet was reality, then and now. I trudged up the stairs and became seven years old again.
Go into the woods, do your business. You’ll feel much better… Stop it, you fool. You will have to go in the woods in the end. Go now and end your misery – and ours. You haven’t stopped talking about a bathroom… Go now.
Russia was like a hard dream from which I could not wake up.
My Review:
Reading memoirs is a rare occurrence for me, however, in an effort to expand my horizons and keep those neurons firing, including this genre has been on my goal list. Having read Ms. Simons’s breathtaking and heartbreaking tome of Lone Star last year, I knew this talented author to be a storyteller of the highest order and surmised that if I were to indulge in someone scratching through the muck and emotional detritus of their own story, hers would be the one to select. I can happily boast – I chose wisely. Ms. Simons wrote of her 1998 return visit to the areas of her childhood in St. Petersburg/Leningrad Russia with her father, after leaving at age ten in the 70s. Her revelations and experiences were life altering for her, and eye opening and mind-bending for me. As a self-indulgent American, I had no idea that opportunities and living conditions had remained so stark and limited. I had never considered that a major superpower would view refrigerators, toilets, and running water as conveniences and luxuries or that their populous could shrug at those issues or would consider cleaning their ancient toilets as being a completely unnecessary task.
Ms. Simons’s writing was heaving with colorful insights and entertaining observations of not only the people and places of her travels, but also how the current observations of those people and places collided with her childhood memories of the same. Bonuses included amusing tidbits of her personal exasperation as due to the lack of road signs, indoor plumbing, or eateries, she was often lost, always hungry, frequently suffering from the need to relieve herself, and meeting countless men named Viktor. I enjoyed her personal pictures and found myself Googling the areas she mentioned as I devoured her emotive and transformative tale. Despite the often archaic, dire, and bleak conditions she found, she imparted her narrative with loving care and respect for their experience. I feasted on this meaty tome like a binge dieter hitting the buffet line. I want to read everything this talented scribe has ever written.
November 24, 2013
Oh I just loved this, if like me you have read The Bronze Horseman, fell totally and utterly in love with Alexander and Tatiana and were completely fascinated by the historical events covered by this book then by all means read this, I think its brilliant. I had no idea just how much of her life Paullina Simons had poured in to this story but this book was a moving account of her research trip back to her Russian homeland before writing the story. She left in 1973 age 10 and returned for the 1st time in 1998.
Once again I found it incredibly insightful and I just love it when authors put so much of themselves in to a book.
As expected I am now compelled to re read the entire epic Bronze Horseman story so goodbye world for a while......
Once again I found it incredibly insightful and I just love it when authors put so much of themselves in to a book.
As expected I am now compelled to re read the entire epic Bronze Horseman story so goodbye world for a while......
November 9, 2014
I was really looking forward to reading this book, mainly because the Bronze Horseman trilogy are some of my favorite books of all times!
I wasn't too impressed with the start; the story of the author traveling from US to Russia and all the nuances of traveling with Russian airline - it was cute but not captivating at all. Then in Leningrad (St. Peterburg) it gets interesting. Being born and raised in Soviet Union myself I could totally connect to how she felt about seeing that life style again after so many years in the western world.
But then about halfway through the book just got flat. Her dad is a grumpy old Russian father, which hits very close to home, but after a while his grumpiness and condescending comments get really old. Her time spent with relatives is nothing I was particularly interested in reading about either; I don't know the author personally and don't know her family so reading the details of the family interactions at dinner table aren't particularly exciting.
I considered dropping the book towards the end cause couldn't find anything else to hold on to but decided to finish it. I'm glad I did because her analysis of the post trip feelings and reactions to her modern US life when she comes back to Texas are again something I could absolutely connect to.
Overall it's ok but I wish it was more about Leningrad and the journey's connection to the Bronze Horseman with less pages spent telling about her family interactions and idiosyncrasies.
I wasn't too impressed with the start; the story of the author traveling from US to Russia and all the nuances of traveling with Russian airline - it was cute but not captivating at all. Then in Leningrad (St. Peterburg) it gets interesting. Being born and raised in Soviet Union myself I could totally connect to how she felt about seeing that life style again after so many years in the western world.
But then about halfway through the book just got flat. Her dad is a grumpy old Russian father, which hits very close to home, but after a while his grumpiness and condescending comments get really old. Her time spent with relatives is nothing I was particularly interested in reading about either; I don't know the author personally and don't know her family so reading the details of the family interactions at dinner table aren't particularly exciting.
I considered dropping the book towards the end cause couldn't find anything else to hold on to but decided to finish it. I'm glad I did because her analysis of the post trip feelings and reactions to her modern US life when she comes back to Texas are again something I could absolutely connect to.
Overall it's ok but I wish it was more about Leningrad and the journey's connection to the Bronze Horseman with less pages spent telling about her family interactions and idiosyncrasies.
February 4, 2016
First read - October 2013
Second read - February 2016
~~Second read comments~~
I ended my first comments with this and I'm starting my second comments with it ... anyone who is a fan of The Bronze Horseman _NEEDS_ to read this book. No doubt about it. Given the setting of TBH, as a reader, you might be a bit distanced from the reality of life in Leningrad then & now .. as it really hasn't changed. PS brilliantly brings every aspect of daily life into sharp focus. The communal living, the poverty, the heavy weight of just existing.
Maybe it's the silent honor for war dead no matter the war that killed them, but her descriptions of the mass graves, the Diorama and other memorials & museums are pouring out a stark reality of what the citizens faced. Without ever seeing it in person we will never know even the merest glimpse of what things look like, but if the emotion I felt in reading her words is any indication, it would be life altering.
There are so many aspects to this book - the incomparable difference of her life in the US vs. reality in Russia and what her life would have been like if her father hadn't gotten her family out, PS remembering her childhood vs. the actuality of her communal apartment on Fifth Soviet and her family dacha on Shepelevo.
My reading this time was so full of poignant quotes. I can't add them all here, but look at my status updates for a lot of them.
~~First read comments~~
"Who said memory is kind? Memory is merciless. My father was right. 'All the things you want to remember, Paullina, I want to forget'."
This is the personal story of Paullina Simons and her father going back to Leningrad prior to her writing The Bronze Horseman. It's the first time she had been back. While memory is a powerful thing, it's the differences between memory and reality that cause the most emotions, the most reactions. The memory of a child versus the reality of a grown woman is vastly different. "These three things:the smell of Shepelevo, the smell of the Metro and the taste of creme brulee ice cream. The essence of my childhood in Russia."
Through this memoir, PS has given us a glimpse into her life, her relationship with her father (I chuckled quite a few times at their exchanges because they are so typically father to daughter comments), her memories as a child and the stark reality of her visit as an adult. She has given us a wonderful account of her six days trying to reconcile her memories and the lives of those still in Leningrad with the life she now lives in America. Some guilt, some appreciation, some sadness.
We are also given her personal impressions of visiting and experiencing some of the sites related to the siege and liberation of Leningrad that her family survived. Just like the magic she created with her words in TBH, the way in which she describes her experiences at the Diorama and mass burial site is nothing short of heartbreaking and vivid that you cannot help but be right there with her and feel the emotions she is feeling.
Anyone who carries the story, emotions and love of Tatiana & Alexander with them, will no doubt love this book as well.
Second read - February 2016
~~Second read comments~~
I ended my first comments with this and I'm starting my second comments with it ... anyone who is a fan of The Bronze Horseman _NEEDS_ to read this book. No doubt about it. Given the setting of TBH, as a reader, you might be a bit distanced from the reality of life in Leningrad then & now .. as it really hasn't changed. PS brilliantly brings every aspect of daily life into sharp focus. The communal living, the poverty, the heavy weight of just existing.
Maybe it's the silent honor for war dead no matter the war that killed them, but her descriptions of the mass graves, the Diorama and other memorials & museums are pouring out a stark reality of what the citizens faced. Without ever seeing it in person we will never know even the merest glimpse of what things look like, but if the emotion I felt in reading her words is any indication, it would be life altering.
There are so many aspects to this book - the incomparable difference of her life in the US vs. reality in Russia and what her life would have been like if her father hadn't gotten her family out, PS remembering her childhood vs. the actuality of her communal apartment on Fifth Soviet and her family dacha on Shepelevo.
My reading this time was so full of poignant quotes. I can't add them all here, but look at my status updates for a lot of them.
~~First read comments~~
"Who said memory is kind? Memory is merciless. My father was right. 'All the things you want to remember, Paullina, I want to forget'."
This is the personal story of Paullina Simons and her father going back to Leningrad prior to her writing The Bronze Horseman. It's the first time she had been back. While memory is a powerful thing, it's the differences between memory and reality that cause the most emotions, the most reactions. The memory of a child versus the reality of a grown woman is vastly different. "These three things:the smell of Shepelevo, the smell of the Metro and the taste of creme brulee ice cream. The essence of my childhood in Russia."
Through this memoir, PS has given us a glimpse into her life, her relationship with her father (I chuckled quite a few times at their exchanges because they are so typically father to daughter comments), her memories as a child and the stark reality of her visit as an adult. She has given us a wonderful account of her six days trying to reconcile her memories and the lives of those still in Leningrad with the life she now lives in America. Some guilt, some appreciation, some sadness.
We are also given her personal impressions of visiting and experiencing some of the sites related to the siege and liberation of Leningrad that her family survived. Just like the magic she created with her words in TBH, the way in which she describes her experiences at the Diorama and mass burial site is nothing short of heartbreaking and vivid that you cannot help but be right there with her and feel the emotions she is feeling.
Anyone who carries the story, emotions and love of Tatiana & Alexander with them, will no doubt love this book as well.
July 14, 2017
Finished Six Days in Leningrand, the trip Paullina Simons took back to Russia, the first time since she left with her family for America when she was 10 years old.
This book is EVERYTHING that I could have ever wanted. From before the trip to each day she spent in Leningrand, it is vivid, it is charming, it is mesmerising, it is heart warming; but the overwhelming feeling I have is that I shouldn't be reading it. It feels so private. It feels like this is Paullina laying out her heart and her soul for us to see. Her struggle, her saddens, her longing, HER SOUL, you can see them in every world, in her six days spent in Leningrand.
You can also see the details that inspired her to write The Bronze Horseman. I can totally relate to her in so many levels. When you visit your childhood home or dare to open up the memories that store so safely inside your heart, you want it to be the same, you want everything to be still. And then you remember they are not, we are looking at them now through adult eyes. Why are they so small? Why are they different than what I remember? Because time doesn't stand still... in our heart we are still that child, living in our memory and dreams....
This is a precious and special gift Paullina has given us. Thank you for taking us with you through your journey. It really is special.
This book is EVERYTHING that I could have ever wanted. From before the trip to each day she spent in Leningrand, it is vivid, it is charming, it is mesmerising, it is heart warming; but the overwhelming feeling I have is that I shouldn't be reading it. It feels so private. It feels like this is Paullina laying out her heart and her soul for us to see. Her struggle, her saddens, her longing, HER SOUL, you can see them in every world, in her six days spent in Leningrand.
You can also see the details that inspired her to write The Bronze Horseman. I can totally relate to her in so many levels. When you visit your childhood home or dare to open up the memories that store so safely inside your heart, you want it to be the same, you want everything to be still. And then you remember they are not, we are looking at them now through adult eyes. Why are they so small? Why are they different than what I remember? Because time doesn't stand still... in our heart we are still that child, living in our memory and dreams....
This is a precious and special gift Paullina has given us. Thank you for taking us with you through your journey. It really is special.
July 19, 2017
I love that you gave us this Paullina, thank you. Beautiful.
October 14, 2016
After I finished graduate school, I treated myself to a backpacking trip through Europe. Communist Russia had always fascinated me. I didn't make it to Russia but I went into Eastern Berlin less than two years after the wall was toppled and the Iron Curtain fell, revealing an empire in disrepair, a corrupt government, and a life portrait frozen in time. Evidence of Krystalnacht and WWII still littered the landscape. The cars were the same color, make and model and none were newer than 25 years. Most were no longer running. Train lines dead ended before reaching the now non-existent wall. It was a stark contrast to the bustling Westernized life in western Berlin. Yet the people were lovely. They were friendly and as helpful and gracious as they could be. They were humble and many wanted to help us find the train station that would take us on to Austria. The problem was, there was no easy way to get to it from the broken transportation systems.
I share this to perspective to Paullina's narration of returning to Russia. What she describes as life goes in Russia is what I experienced to a much smaller degree in eastern Germany. Nothing had changed or been updated in decades. Repairs were not made. Toilets were not cleaned. If people feel no ownership, why bother? Yet this is a much deeper story, cathartic in nature. Paullina is an American author, mother, and wife who was born in Leningrad during the Cold War to Russian parents. Although her father was sent to the Gulags and she did not see him much between the ages of 5 and 10, she lived an idyllic childhood where she was loved, went to school, and played with her cousin every summer at a summer house. Upon release from the Gulags, her father arranged to immigrate to the United States. At the age of 10 Paulina and her family move to New York.
Six Days in Leningrad catalogs Paullina's trip back to Russia with her father and the way she sees her idyllic childhood homes, school, and city from the perspective of an adult. She sifts through what she has come to learn about her beloved country, her parents and friends, remembers her childhood, then contrasts this with her life in Texas, living in an opulent home with a heated pool and six clean toilets. How does she reconcile her Russian self with her American self? This is Paullina's defining moment that reclaims all of the Russian in her while claiming all of the American she has become. There is a deep dissonance that becomes her own war.
This is very well written and provides a very uncomfortable look into a country that has a very proud history along with a very devastating one.
I share this to perspective to Paullina's narration of returning to Russia. What she describes as life goes in Russia is what I experienced to a much smaller degree in eastern Germany. Nothing had changed or been updated in decades. Repairs were not made. Toilets were not cleaned. If people feel no ownership, why bother? Yet this is a much deeper story, cathartic in nature. Paullina is an American author, mother, and wife who was born in Leningrad during the Cold War to Russian parents. Although her father was sent to the Gulags and she did not see him much between the ages of 5 and 10, she lived an idyllic childhood where she was loved, went to school, and played with her cousin every summer at a summer house. Upon release from the Gulags, her father arranged to immigrate to the United States. At the age of 10 Paulina and her family move to New York.
Six Days in Leningrad catalogs Paullina's trip back to Russia with her father and the way she sees her idyllic childhood homes, school, and city from the perspective of an adult. She sifts through what she has come to learn about her beloved country, her parents and friends, remembers her childhood, then contrasts this with her life in Texas, living in an opulent home with a heated pool and six clean toilets. How does she reconcile her Russian self with her American self? This is Paullina's defining moment that reclaims all of the Russian in her while claiming all of the American she has become. There is a deep dissonance that becomes her own war.
This is very well written and provides a very uncomfortable look into a country that has a very proud history along with a very devastating one.
August 16, 2013
When Paullina Simons was just 5, her father was arrested for “anti-Communist agitation”. He was imprisoned, sent to the Gulag and then into internal exile. He made use of this time to learn English and after his release asked for permission to emigrate. Surprisingly this was granted and the family left for the United States where they settled. This book is the story of a trip she and her father made back to Leningrad in 1998, a trip she needed to make for research on her acclaimed novel The Bronze Horseman. But this was much more than a research trip. For both of them it was a step back into the past and a glimpse of what their life would have been if they had stayed in the Soviet Union.
This is a well-written and totally absorbing account of their stay, of the time spent visiting old friends and relations, and the places so important to Paullina’s fiction. The descriptions are vivid and heartfelt, and the sense of what life was like just a few years after the collapse of Communism totally convincing. My own trips to St Petersburg have been more recent, when the country has had time to move forward into the modern world, but much has remained as described here. The one things that has improved though is the state of the toilets in the city – the thread that runs through the book is Paullina’s need for and avoidance of the primitive plumbing – a welcome note of humour in an otherwise quite grim story. And many more of the city’s buildings have now been renovated – although disrepair and peeling stucco and dereliction are never far away. Life for many of Russia’s citizens is still pretty difficult, something she describes with empathy and affection.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I appreciated the detail - especially little things like her father admitting to cooking over the eternal flame on the Field of Mars when a young man, an image that will stay with me! The crumbling buildings, the communal apartments (not so many left now), the generosity of people, life on their dachas, the ever-present memory of the war and the siege of Leningrad that took so many lives. This is a book that works on so many levels – as history, travel, autobiography - and is a moving account of one woman’s return to her childhood home. Anyone who enjoys Paullina’s novels will enjoy this glimpse into her private world, as will anyone interested in Russia’s past and present. It deserves, and hopefully will receive, a wide readership.
This is a well-written and totally absorbing account of their stay, of the time spent visiting old friends and relations, and the places so important to Paullina’s fiction. The descriptions are vivid and heartfelt, and the sense of what life was like just a few years after the collapse of Communism totally convincing. My own trips to St Petersburg have been more recent, when the country has had time to move forward into the modern world, but much has remained as described here. The one things that has improved though is the state of the toilets in the city – the thread that runs through the book is Paullina’s need for and avoidance of the primitive plumbing – a welcome note of humour in an otherwise quite grim story. And many more of the city’s buildings have now been renovated – although disrepair and peeling stucco and dereliction are never far away. Life for many of Russia’s citizens is still pretty difficult, something she describes with empathy and affection.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I appreciated the detail - especially little things like her father admitting to cooking over the eternal flame on the Field of Mars when a young man, an image that will stay with me! The crumbling buildings, the communal apartments (not so many left now), the generosity of people, life on their dachas, the ever-present memory of the war and the siege of Leningrad that took so many lives. This is a book that works on so many levels – as history, travel, autobiography - and is a moving account of one woman’s return to her childhood home. Anyone who enjoys Paullina’s novels will enjoy this glimpse into her private world, as will anyone interested in Russia’s past and present. It deserves, and hopefully will receive, a wide readership.
January 5, 2016
Five brilliant amazing incredible stars to this beautiful memoir about American author Paullina Simon's journey to her home country of Russia with her father. This book brought me to tears so many times... I suppose I have a bit of a vested interest as I did myself visit Leningrad (or St. Petersburg as it is called now) with my own Dad earlier this year. I was also there to do book research and, like Paullina, I had to leave my little babies behind with my husband and mother! I also had only four days in which to learn as much as possible about the city (Paullina had six! Hence the name of the book). So you can see why this particular story resonated so strongly with me.
While I was in St. Petersburg I read The Bronze Horseman for the first time and I was absorbed by the romance of the heroine and hero set against the cruel bleak backdrop of the Leningrad Siege.
This memoir will appeal to lovers of The Bronze Horseman series and people who have fallen in love with St. Petersburg, but it's also a beautiful read in its own right as Paullina Simons describes both the joy and heartache of returning to places which hold the memories of her childhood. It's humorous and touching and beautifully written. Paullina breaks open her heart to tell us about the incredible sacrifices of the Russians soldiers who gave their lives at the infamous Nevsky Patch and the brave men, women and children who held out against the German blockade, starving in their thousands, in their millions as the siege stretched on.
It was a pleasure to meet the characters of Paullina's friends and family especially her father. This book is as much a homage to him as it is to Russia, both the Russia Paullina remembers from childhood and the one it is today, a paradox of beauty and ugliness, a place which needs to remember the past but has to find a way to reconcile past injustices with the future.
I loved it. Highly recommended.
While I was in St. Petersburg I read The Bronze Horseman for the first time and I was absorbed by the romance of the heroine and hero set against the cruel bleak backdrop of the Leningrad Siege.
This memoir will appeal to lovers of The Bronze Horseman series and people who have fallen in love with St. Petersburg, but it's also a beautiful read in its own right as Paullina Simons describes both the joy and heartache of returning to places which hold the memories of her childhood. It's humorous and touching and beautifully written. Paullina breaks open her heart to tell us about the incredible sacrifices of the Russians soldiers who gave their lives at the infamous Nevsky Patch and the brave men, women and children who held out against the German blockade, starving in their thousands, in their millions as the siege stretched on.
It was a pleasure to meet the characters of Paullina's friends and family especially her father. This book is as much a homage to him as it is to Russia, both the Russia Paullina remembers from childhood and the one it is today, a paradox of beauty and ugliness, a place which needs to remember the past but has to find a way to reconcile past injustices with the future.
I loved it. Highly recommended.
November 8, 2016
ix Days in Leningrad is the memoir of the famous author of ‘The Bronze Horseman’ series, Paulina Simons. It is about the journey behind ‘The Bronze Horseman’. Paulina was born in Russia and soon after she started writing her first story, she traveled from the U.S. to Leningrad with her father to do some research. (Note: Leningrad is now known as St. Petersburg).
It had been a quarter of a century since Paulina and her father visited their homeland and it was not what they expected. They found a city that looked war torn as if it had gone back in time. They saw buildings in disarray, bombed fields that wouldn’t grow food, and huge families living together in small rooms. Despite that, they also met up with old family friends that were still as warm and inviting as ever.
Six Days in Leningrad is the story of Paulina Simons family history and the nation they came from. Though it has a slow start, it is a poignant story and history that reads very much, like a novel. At times I felt like I was there with Paulina and her father, witnessing what has become of her childhood home.
My grandparents fled from Russia as Jews being persecuted. They wouldn’t talk about it but I imagine from the few words they did speak, that they were in one of the Jewish ghettos. I hate to imagine what they went through and know they wanted to protect us from their reality. I have read quite a bit about Russia and its history. I don’t feel any kind of tie to it but am curious about it, as I am about many countries and their histories.
It had been a quarter of a century since Paulina and her father visited their homeland and it was not what they expected. They found a city that looked war torn as if it had gone back in time. They saw buildings in disarray, bombed fields that wouldn’t grow food, and huge families living together in small rooms. Despite that, they also met up with old family friends that were still as warm and inviting as ever.
Six Days in Leningrad is the story of Paulina Simons family history and the nation they came from. Though it has a slow start, it is a poignant story and history that reads very much, like a novel. At times I felt like I was there with Paulina and her father, witnessing what has become of her childhood home.
My grandparents fled from Russia as Jews being persecuted. They wouldn’t talk about it but I imagine from the few words they did speak, that they were in one of the Jewish ghettos. I hate to imagine what they went through and know they wanted to protect us from their reality. I have read quite a bit about Russia and its history. I don’t feel any kind of tie to it but am curious about it, as I am about many countries and their histories.
September 13, 2015
The Bronze Horseman is my all time favourite book in the world. It took me forever to get through as i had to keep searching on Google at the places and buildings she mentioned. I cannot wait to re-read the trilogy with new eyes, i will be able to see it all in my head while reading.
I loved the pictures at the end, the street where Tatiana & Alexander first saw each other, the apartments and The Bronze Horseman statue.
A must read for any fan of TBH.
I loved the pictures at the end, the street where Tatiana & Alexander first saw each other, the apartments and The Bronze Horseman statue.
A must read for any fan of TBH.
January 9, 2017
She will forever be my favourite story teller! Ah! Paullina is so talented, even this memoir is brilliant, heartfelt, captivating and relatable. So many times I felt as though I was seeing everything through her eyes. Although, I must state that I really, really would have loved to have seen a picture of this infamous Radik of when he was young! The whole time he was talked about I was dying to see it for myself this incredible, remarkable human being. He was described as if he was a unicorn
August 19, 2013
This is a must read for fans of Paullina Simons. It is a beautiful story of her family and her Russia. As a fan of everything Paullina writes it was so enjoyable to read about her life and see all the little pieces that make up her stories.
I hope it comes out in paperback.
Upon finishing it though I now feel the need to re-read The Bronze Horseman. For the 6th time. Yessss!
I hope it comes out in paperback.
Upon finishing it though I now feel the need to re-read The Bronze Horseman. For the 6th time. Yessss!
October 1, 2019
The subject was very interesting, not sure whether I like her style of writing. The Bronze Horseman is one of the few books I actually abandoned so maybe she just isn't my kind of writer.
July 9, 2019
I loved 'Six Days in Leningrad'. Paullina was born in Russia and migrated to the US at age 10. This is her first trip back - in her late 30's with her Dad - ostensibly to research for a novel - for just six days. But the book is largely about visiting places that loom large in her childhood memories.This book resonates on many levels. She captures the migrant's 'visiting home' so well, the life of every day Russians under communism, briefly but memorably - the history of the siege of Leningrad. Her relationship with her Dad threads through the book and most interestingly she writes herself as she is (I found her annoying on more than a few occasions - to me that showed how honest the book was - as an author she could've given us all rose coloured glasses to read her with).
May 5, 2020
Thank you Ms Simons for a very personal story.
May 25, 2023
This was a very relatable book for me. Having parents who fled an Eastern Block Communist country (Hungary) , I too could empathize with the experiences and feelings Paulina Simons had in this book. I loved her westernized perspective and the heartfelt conflict she had in her experiences. I loved most of all the gratitude she had for her father in giving her wonderful opportunities and a lifestyle by fleeing his homeland. I too am eternally grateful to my father for his bravery and foresight in leaving Hungary after the 1956 revolution and settling in Australia. An emotional read that struck a personal chord in me.
November 13, 2016
The never-before-told story behind one of the best-loved romantic sagas of all time.
Paullina Simons was born in Leningrad in 1963 and left with her family to the United States when she was ten years old wanting to be a writer when she grew up. In 1998, Paullina returned with her father to Russia for the first time in twenty-five years to research her fourth novel, which would become the internationally bestselling THE BRONZE HORSEMAN, a saga of love, betrayal, tragedy, and hope set against the backdrop of World War II.
SIX DAYS IN LENINGRAD: A Memoir (HarperCollins) gives readers a glimpse into the private life of creator and bestselling author, Paullina Simons, and the real story behind her epic novels. It’s an intimate walk through a land where time had stood still. Paullina Simons gives us a work of non-fiction as captivating and heart-wrenching as the lives of Alexander and Tatiana in her sweeping “Bronze Horseman Trilogy.”
“I walked into my dream and kept walking with my Leningrad in front of me and behind me and all around me. I wasn’t carrying Russia with me. It was carrying me.” Paullina Simons, Six Days in Leningrad
paulaanddadAfter a quarter-century away from her native land, Paullina, and her father found a world trapped in yesteryear, with crumbling stucco buildings, entire families living in communal apartments, and barren fields bombed so badly that nothing would grow there even fifty years later. And yet there were the spectacular white nights, the warm hospitality of family, friends and, of course, the pelmeni and caviar.
At times poignant, at times inspiring and funny, this is both a glimpse into the inspiration behind the epic saga, and a touching story of a father and a daughter.
I haven’t read any books in The Bronze Horseman trilogy, or any of Paullina’s other novels, so I am at a disadvantage when reading her memoir. I can and do appreciate the sheer emotional journey she experienced, and spanning dramatic narrative Paullina shares in her memoir.
Paullina Simons was born in Leningrad in 1963 and left with her family to the United States when she was ten years old wanting to be a writer when she grew up. In 1998, Paullina returned with her father to Russia for the first time in twenty-five years to research her fourth novel, which would become the internationally bestselling THE BRONZE HORSEMAN, a saga of love, betrayal, tragedy, and hope set against the backdrop of World War II.
SIX DAYS IN LENINGRAD: A Memoir (HarperCollins) gives readers a glimpse into the private life of creator and bestselling author, Paullina Simons, and the real story behind her epic novels. It’s an intimate walk through a land where time had stood still. Paullina Simons gives us a work of non-fiction as captivating and heart-wrenching as the lives of Alexander and Tatiana in her sweeping “Bronze Horseman Trilogy.”
“I walked into my dream and kept walking with my Leningrad in front of me and behind me and all around me. I wasn’t carrying Russia with me. It was carrying me.” Paullina Simons, Six Days in Leningrad
paulaanddadAfter a quarter-century away from her native land, Paullina, and her father found a world trapped in yesteryear, with crumbling stucco buildings, entire families living in communal apartments, and barren fields bombed so badly that nothing would grow there even fifty years later. And yet there were the spectacular white nights, the warm hospitality of family, friends and, of course, the pelmeni and caviar.
At times poignant, at times inspiring and funny, this is both a glimpse into the inspiration behind the epic saga, and a touching story of a father and a daughter.
I haven’t read any books in The Bronze Horseman trilogy, or any of Paullina’s other novels, so I am at a disadvantage when reading her memoir. I can and do appreciate the sheer emotional journey she experienced, and spanning dramatic narrative Paullina shares in her memoir.
June 3, 2014
Thank you Paullina. Thank you very much for share this experience with us.
Your personal journey to the country who saw you born. Your going back to your childhood, the people who loved you and have been stuck in Russia.
Thank you for TBH and was so moving to me all you have lived that I felt that I was with you in Shepelevo, at the Dorama. Walking thru the fields of mars, standing in front of the Neva, Ladoga...all your life exposed. Your heart. I smell it too. And when you returned I barely breath because I lived your sadness and the meaning that you have a life. A new life that your father gave it you as a gift.
and how you could keep living while you were locked in your memories.
"Who said memory is kind? Memory is merciless . My father was right. 'All the things you want to remember, Paullina, I want to forget'."
But without a past we have no future
Your personal journey to the country who saw you born. Your going back to your childhood, the people who loved you and have been stuck in Russia.
Thank you for TBH and was so moving to me all you have lived that I felt that I was with you in Shepelevo, at the Dorama. Walking thru the fields of mars, standing in front of the Neva, Ladoga...all your life exposed. Your heart. I smell it too. And when you returned I barely breath because I lived your sadness and the meaning that you have a life. A new life that your father gave it you as a gift.
and how you could keep living while you were locked in your memories.
"Who said memory is kind? Memory is merciless . My father was right. 'All the things you want to remember, Paullina, I want to forget'."
But without a past we have no future
October 22, 2013
To all fans of "The Bronze Horseman" - you will not want to miss out on reading this memoir. It's a very personal journey for Simons to go back to Leningrad/St. Petersburg. I loved the fact that she traveled back with her dad and all the funny and unique circumstances that go with traveling with an older parent. (A lot of us can relate.)
Once I finished this book - I couldn't wait to re-read TBH. I have a greater appreciation for all the landmarks Simons had written about. It made me sad to think that even in 1998 (when the author traveled back to her native Russia), life in the former Soviet Union was only marginally better than when she left in the early 1970s. One can only hope that all those friends and loved ones that Paullina left behind are living in better conditions now.
Once I finished this book - I couldn't wait to re-read TBH. I have a greater appreciation for all the landmarks Simons had written about. It made me sad to think that even in 1998 (when the author traveled back to her native Russia), life in the former Soviet Union was only marginally better than when she left in the early 1970s. One can only hope that all those friends and loved ones that Paullina left behind are living in better conditions now.
May 13, 2021
Oh, Paullina, how I love you! This book is a treasure. To read how The Bronze Horseman came to life! How much of Paullina's life is in the books and not just those books, but her other books as well.
And the photos! I stared at the photos so long, like I expected Alexander and Tatiana to be in them. The Fifth Soviet apartment, the Road of Life, the street where they met, the dacha...Thank you for this book, Paullina Simons! ❤
And the photos! I stared at the photos so long, like I expected Alexander and Tatiana to be in them. The Fifth Soviet apartment, the Road of Life, the street where they met, the dacha...Thank you for this book, Paullina Simons! ❤
August 5, 2013
Amazing book! Thank you Paullina for
Sharing your experience with us all! The journey back to your birth place with your papa is full of so much detail and passion! Your books never disappoint! I have always wanted to visit at Petersburg since reading The Bronze Horseman 12 years ago but now after reading your memoir, I want to go even more!
Sharing your experience with us all! The journey back to your birth place with your papa is full of so much detail and passion! Your books never disappoint! I have always wanted to visit at Petersburg since reading The Bronze Horseman 12 years ago but now after reading your memoir, I want to go even more!
March 6, 2014
I really enjoyed this memoir. I loved Simons' descriptions of her Russia, felt her pain and longing to see and experience what she remembered and I loved how she illustrated her relationship with her father.
Having read and loved The Bronze Horseman, I felt even more connected to this book and appreciate the experiences and memories that went into her beloved trilogy.
A great read.
Having read and loved The Bronze Horseman, I felt even more connected to this book and appreciate the experiences and memories that went into her beloved trilogy.
A great read.
January 31, 2015
Very dull. She mentions and author who talks about toilets in his travel book well this is the same. How she can never find a toilet and then how she deals with her feminine hygiene. I feel this should have been given to her family not to the general public.
August 10, 2013
Heart wrenching memories of a life once lived in Russia helps us understand the lead up to Paullina's creation of the best story ever written, The Bronze Horseman. Wonderfully written as always
October 16, 2015
Incredible.
November 7, 2014
*review to come!*
July 15, 2017
A must read for any fan of "The Bronze Horseman"
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