Bears in the Streets: Three Journeys across a Changing Russia

by Lisa Dickey

**One of Bustle's 17 of the Best Nonfiction Books Coming in January 2017**
**One of Men's Journal's 7 Best Books of January**

Lisa Dickey traveled across the whole of Russia three times—in 1995, 2005 and 2015—making friends in eleven different cities, then coming back again and again to see how their lives had changed. Like the acclaimed British documentary series Seven Up!, she traces the ups and downs of ordinary people’s lives, in the process painting a deeply nuanced portrait of modern Russia.

From the caretakers of a lighthouse in Vladivostok, to the Jewish community of Birobidzhan, to a farmer in Buryatia, to a group of gay friends in Novosibirsk, to a wealthy “New Russian” family in Chelyabinsk, to a rap star in Moscow, Dickey profiles a wide cross-section of people in one of the most fascinating, dynamic and important countries on Earth. Along the way, she explores dramatic changes in everything from technology to social norms, drinks copious amounts of vodka, and learns firsthand how the Russians really feel about Vladimir Putin.

Including powerful photographs of people and places over time, and filled with wacky travel stories, unexpected twists, and keen insights, Bears in the Streets offers an unprecedented on-the-ground view of Russia today.

Genres: Nonfiction, Russia, Travel, Memoir, History, Politics, Russian History

336 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 31, 2017

About the author

Lisa Dickey, co-writer of The Situation Room by George Stephanopoulos with Lisa Dickey, is a longtime author and book collaborator. She has helped clients write more than 20 published nonfiction books, including eleven New York Times Best Sellers.

Lisa began her writing career in 1994 in St. Petersburg, Russia, where she wrote articles for The Moscow Times and USA Today. Upon returning to the United States in late 1996, she worked with tech reporter Kara Swisher on her first book, AOL.COM. From that initial collaboration, she launched a career as a book collaborator.

Over the next two decades, Lisa worked with high-profile clients such as Jill Biden, Patrick Swayze, Gavin Newsom, Cissy Houston, Herbie Hancock and Tammy Duckworth. Her collaborations have spanned a vast array of topics, from politics to business to entertainment to international relations.

Lisa is also an accomplished storyteller on stage, appearing at live events such as the Moth Grand Slam, Don’t Tell My Mother, Eat Your Words, and Drunk on Stage at Akbar. She is a credited writer on the award-winning documentary film Letter to Anita.

Prior to her writing career, Lisa worked as a Russian translator and, for nine glorious months, as a lounge singer in Japan. A 1988 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a B.A. in Russian Language and Literature, she lives with her wife, the TV and film writer Randi Barnes, in Los Angeles and Washington DC.

Reviews

[Jaidee (moving into a winter of nonfiction) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.1 "довольно успешная попытка и немного лучше, чем хорошее чтение" stars !!!

First of all a thank you to GR buddy Ann for recommending this book to me( based on her partial read of it) after finishing the extremely disappointing book by Anne Garrels' Putin Country: A Journey into the Real Russia in 2018. Ann this was a helluva lot better ...thank you.

If you decide to read this please go in with the mindset of a passion project memoir travelogue as opposed to something deep and probing. I'm not going to lie...I was hoping for something that had much more cultural, sociological and political merit. When I changed gears into something more surface and subjective...I was able to be lured in and enjoy to a moderate degree.

Ms. Dickey is a journalist and ghostwriter as well as being a Russophile. She embarked on three trips across Russia in 1995, 2005, and 2015. She travelled to Vladivistock in the far East through to Birobidzhan, Ulan-Ude, Galtai, Lake Baikal, Novosibirsk, Chelyabinsk, Kazan, Moscow and St. Petersburg. She follows the same small group of people in each region over the twenty years and writes about the conversations, dynamics, and a bit about each place. All the stories and vignettes were extremely interesting if superficial and brief. I also found the authorial voice rather distracting and at times annoying. Her subjectivity and naivete were sometimes surprising and indulgent. Ms. Dickey expresses much sympathy but I am not sure if she truly understands or expresses empathy. Many will disagree and likely the author herself would as well. I found her American biases really got in the way of understanding and delving more fully. Despite these moderate criticisms I am very glad to have experienced this travelogue and through her eyes see parts of the world that I will likely never experience.

This was a touch better than a good reading experience (3.1) and will sit on my three star shelf.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author first sets off in 1995, shortly after the breakup of the Soviet Union, with photojournalist Gary Motoso. A three month journey that encompasses a cross section of this huge country, talking to a wide range of people, chronicling how their lives are going now that the Soviet Union has collapsed. She will repeat this same journey, meeting the same people, at least those that she can find, those still alive and lastly again in 2015.

What sets this book apart is the wide range of areas and people she talks to learning the changing status of their lives. She visits the Jewish Community in Birobidzhan, talking to their rabbi and others. She goes to Chita, in Eastern Siberia talking to the small business trying to seize opportunities to increase their fortune. Galtai, where she talk to the Buryat farmers who still slaughter sheep in the way taught by Genghis Khan. Will admit to skimming this part as it is quite graphic. She repeats an expedition of Lake Biakhal and visits the gay scene in Novosibirsk. Gay herself, something she was hesitant to mention in this country, and learns if the viewpoint on homosexuality is becoming more accepting. Regular people, regular lives, so interesting to learn of these vast differences and how they are viewed.

The views of these Russians on not only their own country but on Putin, American /Russian relations, what they believe, how they see their country progressing. The food they eat, how they celebrate and yes much alcohol. Well written, plainly, easy to follow, including pictures of the various people thirty years apart, this is the very best of armchair travel.

ARC from Netgalley.

[Gill · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Bears in the Streets' by Lisa Dickey

4 stars/ 8 out of 10

I was interested in reading this book, in order to gain some understanding of how life has changed for ordinary people in Russia, over a period of 20 years.

Lisa Dickey first visited a wide variety of locations in Russia in 1995. She returned to the same locations in both 2005 and 2015, in the hope of following up on her initial interviews by re-meeting, as far as possible, the same people.

11 of the 12 chapters follow a similar format, each being based in a specific location (from Vladivostok to St. Petersburg).

I thought the structure of the book worked well. In most cases, Dickey was welcomed back enthusiastically, even when she gave no notice of her imminent new visit. The cultures that she visited in the different locations varied immensely, but were always of interest to me.

For example, in the chapter set in Galtai, I felt immensely squeamish about the food preparation and meal of a sheep, but was fascinated and moved by the description of scattering vodka for fire, earth, wind and water. In the same chapter, I found it amazing to read about the importance for these people of Genghis Khan.

I was very interested to read about people's views on Putin; such an insight for me. I found the situations where people were no longer alive on Dickey's second and third visit very moving.

I was most interested in the chapters about Moscow and St. Petersburg, both of which I had visited in the 1980s (the latter then being Leningrad). I found the final chapter (St. Petersburg) fascinating, with its look at 5 generations of the same family.

I thought 'Bears in the Streets' was both interesting and informative.

Thank you to St Martin's Press and to NetGalley for an ARC.

[Lisa (NY) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bears in the Streets is about the author's three journeys across Russia, in 1995, 2005 and 2015, each time visiting the same people and towns. The book was a combination of memoir, travelogue and social history of two decades of Russian life. Dickey has a very engaging, personal way of writing that kept me turning the pages, fascinated by her reflections on the Russians she met and and the changes in their lives.

[Jeanette · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was well worth the reading time. Its positives all core around the personal meetings, those individuals (from their own words) that she met and met again during the 3 trips. 1995, 2005, 2015 were the dates of the 3 separate 2 to 3 month each trips. This is a travelogue for those distance (Eastern to Western direction) journeys in which she stopped at all the same places. The Lake Baikal part / stop was an entire star. Excellent! I had no idea it held that much water.

By giving you the appearance changes, the tone variances, the residents different fates and progressions- you get an eye glimpse into Russians. "Russians" that are from 20 plus divisions of location nomenclature and beyond dozens and dozens of ethnic, cultural, religious, economic, tribal and 10 or 12 other dividing "labels". So what is a Russian?

My appreciation of the read is that Lisa Dickey approached asking Russians about what is Russia and what is "Russian" in various ways. And my dominate thought after reading this book- is the vast difference of those answers. AND YET, most of them fully acknowledge that they are separate groups and not at all an "entity". Some saying that the U.S.S.R. itself was a posit of complete artificiality to "unity".

It was informative to their opinions (varied of course) as a whole. Way too much about Lisa- and her own personal life in copy count, IMHO. But I truly felt for her when she was alone and sick so close to the very beginning of the 2015 trip. Although frankly, some of her lodging choices were reprehensible and just not wise. Both. Beyond that the liquor drinking throughout is way beyond conceptions of possible "livable" capacity. Host and guest- but especially the hosts! It's witness that alcohol is a major food group of calories taken in.

It was super interesting to hear that more than a couple of very different regions' occupants totally believed that 9/11 occurred and was caused by the USA government itself. And also yet at the same time, want to seem to just about "take out" Syria because of the ISIS bent terrorists' threats to everyone else in the world. And also intriguing that they school or emigrate to Europe or Canada when they do (for these groups she did meet) especially in Moscow and the western edges St. Petersburg/ Leningrad. And the only American visitors went to LA, Vegas, Miami- and thought they knew America from those 3 places. Also their answers on Putin and all his former peers were informative. Especially Yelsin, letting those farmers have their "own property" land again. And how that turned out during the latter visit- with governmental controls that insured that they failed.

This wasn't a 4 star read for me because of the limits of choices Lisa made to visit and repeat visit. Those places, distant as they are, are not at all representative of "norm" Russians, IMHO. Maybe in the 4 Easternmost places, but not the rest. She had too many "elites" in the mix for it to be "norm".

[Care · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lisa Dickey's Bears in the Streets is an incredible reflection on the author's three trips to Russia, each set ten years apart, told in the format of each chapter comparing the three experiences by city. It's a masterful accomplishment, interspersed every and now and then with photos and full of personal connections the author forged over thirty years.

Dickey traveled in 1995 with a photographer she met in Russia, visiting small towns and large cities and making their ways across the post-Cold War country via train, bus, car, etc. Along the way she made friends, staying with Russian families and having sometimes incredibly touching experiences. Ten years later, Dickey went back with a different photographer and caught up with some of those same people, listening to how their lives had changed. And ten years after that, in 2015, she made the trip solo and in the middle of the ruble krizis, seeing how the country had changed and how the people she knew had grown.

I absolutely enjoyed this semi-travel diary, semi-social commentary on the changing faces of a country I've never had the pleasure of traveling to. The author does an incredible job investigating questions of religion, minorities, economics, and impressions of the US while acknowledging her own potential biases and limitations as an American tourist in fully grasping Russian views. The chapters are well-written and succinct, always centered around one city and her experience there every decade. In this manner, the reader can easily see the similarities and differences over time and more fully appreciate the stories of Russian individuals that Dickey is tryin to tell. Perhaps most touching for me were her times with a farmer family in Galtai and a five-generation family she met in St. Petersburg.

I highly recommend this for anyone who has interest in travel diaries, a unique perspective on the changes in Russia, or a good memoir!

Thanks the the publisher for an ARC in exchange for a fair review!

[Olya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was looking forward to this one - but it turned out to be more of a personal travel journal - 50% in, I had read more about the author than I ever wanted to know. The actual stories of Russian towns and people were almost an "oh, and I met this person, but who cares - here's what happened to me in this town".
Only giving it 2 stars because the bits of history that were in there were actually really interesting - just had to wade through too much American-level navel-gazing to get to them.

[Carol Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of an American writer who traveled across Russia in 1995, 2005, and 2015. Lisa Dickey tried to speak with the same people each time and see how their circumstances and views had changed. She knew Russian and had lived in St. Petersburg before she started this venture.

I found her journeys compelling. She began in Vladivostok, on Russia's Pacific Coast, and followed the route of the Trans Siberian Railway all the way to St. Petersburg. In each of the first two trips, she traveled with a male photojournalist. In the final one, she went alone.

Most of the places she visited were cities, but in Buryatia, a Russian republic north of Mongolia, she visited a farming family in a remote village. She was the first foreigner they had ever seen. They captured and killed a sheep to feast her and her companion. She seemed almost as at home with them as she was with Russia's first rapper, who lives in Moscow.

She visited a good sampling of Russia's peoples. One of her most interesting stops was Birobidzhan, the "Jewish People's Republic" that Stalin set up in Russia's Far East. The government had promoted it as a paradise, but the Jews who came, mostly of their own accord, found that it was a barely settled, mosquito-ridden swamp. By the time that Dickey first visited, many people had left for Israel or other destinations. The service in the one "synagogue" she visited included prayers to Jesus. By the time of her subsequent visits, a large synagogue had been built and the streets had statues of menorahs and shofars and Sholem Aleichim, but many more people had left for Israel. Schools attempt to preserve Jewish culture.

The great majority of the Russians Dickey spoke with say they love Putin. In 2015, they were angry at the United States for its reaction to Putin's actions in Crimea, but they were still friendly to Dickey.

Dickey is a lesbian. She didn't come out to the Russians she knew until her 2015 trip, which was two years after Russia had passed legislation banning disseminating "homosexual propaganda" to minors and authorizing the state to take away children adopted by gays. The people she knew accepted her lesbianism. The Russian gays she knew did not share the general enthusiasm for Putin.

Even though most of the people she knew had become far more prosperous since she first met them (with the exception of the farmers, who had terrible reverses), many (not the gays or the rapper) said that life was better under the Soviet Union because they had virtually guaranteed education, health care, jobs, and pensions.

This book is a fascinating look at ordinary Russians.

[Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you've ever been to Russia and, in particular, stayed with a family there, this book may make you a little bit nostalgic. For me, this was a book not only about changing perspectives, but about the unapologetic, self-assured Russian hospitality that could only fail to make an impression on the very coldest of hearts. Dickey describes features of Russian-style welcome that I can't imagine happening in the US: she is let into people's houses when she shows up unannounced, drinks with strangers at their homes until they become friends, is given the master bedroom even though that's the only place the hosts have to sleep, is taken out on a research vessel with a team of scientists as casually if they were only out on a pleasure cruise, and on and on. I mean, seriously: how beautiful to be able to just show up at someone's place after ten years and be welcomed like no time had passed at all?

I felt like I knew these people, not just because of Dickey's careful descriptions of them, but because she captures some essence that continues to be compelling about the Russian nature, whether the person was the eternal jokester, the philosopher, the entrepreneur, or just one of those simple lovely people who make do with what they have and strive to be content.

A heartwarming read and a necessary reminder that what we hear about Russia in the media doesn't reflect every aspect of their culture.

[victor harris · Rating 2 out of 5]

The three trips the author took across Russia were in 1995, 2005, and 2015. To some extent they show how the country has been transformed since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the leader transitions to Putin. (Whom, if this source is accurate, the Russians love.) Unfortunately many of the whys of that transformation and the Putin worship are not explored in any depth. They are noted but then the commentary moves elsewhere. The chatty style of the delivery is somewhat off-putting, as Dickey seems prone to mishaps (computer issues) and bureaucratic tangles, and they consume a hefty part of the narrative. Yes, it is a travel journal not a work of analysis, but after the first trip one would think that more care would have been given to avert such problems.
It is definitely more of an inward-focused book rather than commentary on Russia. The author is gay and that is one of the central themes: who she can trust in Russia with that information, and who in Russia shares her preferences as she moves from location to location. That tends to deaden the flow rather than enhance it and probably a chapter on it to get it out of the way would have been preferable instead of weaving it into multiple segments.
Overall, not a very illuminating look at Russia, though it has some strong points, probably a 2.3 rating.

[Dmitry · Rating 2 out of 5]

(The English review is placed beneath the Russian one)

Книга «Bears In The Streets» является сборником истории одной американки, которая три раза посещала Россию встречаясь с теми же самыми людьми, с которыми она впервые встретилась в начале 90-ых (последняя встреча датируется 2014 годом, который как мы знаем, знаменит, прежде всего, началом открытого противостояния России и Запада, которое стало следствие аннексии Крыма и участие России в событиях на Донбассе). Это три истории даже не столько одной и той же страны (с 90-ых по 2014), сколько три истории людей, чьи политические воззрения менялись в том же направлении что внешняя политика России. Если в самый первый раз, когда автор впервые посетила Россию, взгляды многих россиян были скорее дружественные в отношении США как государства, то уже когда автор посетила страну в 2014 году, она столкнулась не только с показной лояльность Путину со стороны её русских знакомых, но и в некоторых случаях с прямой агрессией в адрес США. Причина в этом проста – Украина.

Что интересного можно найти в этой книге, хочется спросить? Как всякий личный взгляд, эта книга является исключительно персональным взглядом автора. Возможно, так получилось случайно, но в большей части книги я не встретил человека, который бы критически отозвался о Путине. Возможно, это объясняется чистой случайностью, а возможно люди в России даже в те времена опасались открыто высказывать свои антиправительственные взгляды, особенно учитывая иностранный статус автора. Так же возможно, что в те дни антиправительственные взгляды были больше характерны для Москвы и Санкт-Петербурга и, за небольшим исключением, вся остальная России слепо верила и поддерживала Путина. Однако в истинности такой версии я сомневаюсь. В тоже самое время я не считаю, что это было сделано автором специально, т.е. я не считаю, что она намерено включила в свою книгу исключительно «фанатов Путина», особенно учитывая сложность структуры книги, ведь автор рассказывает историю трёх встреч с одними и теми же людьми. Но в любом случаи, это печально, что большая часть людей, с которыми была знакома автор этой книги, оказались настолько глупыми.

I wasn’t sure, but when I asked Pasha and Vika what they thought of Putin, they responded the same way the lighthouse keepers, Vasily and Valya, had: they loved him.
“I know Americans don’t really like Putin,” Pasha told me, “and that your government blames Russia for what’s happening in Ukraine. But really, America is behind it. Why is America funneling arms to Ukraine? Why is your government always stirring things up in faraway parts of the world?” I didn’t agree with his black-and-white assessment of Ukraine, but I didn’t have a good answer for his final question, either. It’s difficult to defend the notion of “American exceptionalism”— assuming I’d even want to—in a way that doesn’t sound ridiculously self-important. I’m neither an expert on Ukraine, nor am I as well versed in twenty-first-century international relations as I’d like to be. So, for purposes of this trip, I decided that it was smarter simply to listen to what Russians had to say, rather than leaping into arguments.
“The problem,” Vika interjected, “is that America doesn’t respect Russia. They think we’re backward—like we have bears wandering around in the streets here.”
<…>
I asked how her situation now compared to that of 1995 and 2005, and she didn’t hesitate. “Now is better than 20 years ago,” she told me, “but Soviet times were better than now, because you always knew what was what.”
“Meaning?” I asked.
“Back then, you knew the price of everything, what would happen at work, exactly when you could retire, and what your pension would be,” she replied. “Now, everything is more difficult. There are unknowns. There weren’t before.”
<…>
We engaged in small talk for a few minutes, and then he abruptly switched topics.
Liza, what do you know about Ukraine?” he asked. I wasn’t sure how to answer; was this a real question, or a challenge? I didn’t immediately respond, so he tried again: “What do Americans know about Ukraine?” He stared at me, waiting.
“That’s a pretty broad question,” I said.
“Then let me ask you this,” he said. “What if the bears suddenly came to Canada, and started handing out money, paying people there to fight against America? Would you like that? Would that be a good thing?” By “bears,” he obviously meant Russians, and he was setting up an equation: Americans wouldn’t want other countries stirring up trouble on their doorstep, so why should we stir up trouble on Russia’s? Meaning, more specifically, why does America think it’s OK to send guns and money to Ukraine?
“Let me ask you another question,” he said, still staring at me. “How many Russian military bases are near American soil? None. And how many American military bases are near Russia? Many.” This was true: the United States has multiple bases in Japan, South Korea, Turkey, the Middle East, and all over western Europe. “How would Americans like it if Russians had military bases in Canada and Mexico?” Igor asked. “Would they like that?” We both knew the answer: of course not. The Soviets once had a military presence in Cuba, after all, and look how well that had gone. The Russians had closed their base there in 2002, and one didn’t need a top-secret security clearance to know that the American government preferred to keep it that way.
“America wants to spread its influence all over the world,” Big Igor went on. “But we just want to be left alone.” He wasn’t the first to express that sentiment to me on this trip. Both Pasha in Chita and Vasily in Vladivostok had argued the same thing: that Russians want to be left alone, but we Americans keep poking our nose in their business. One could certainly argue that if Russia wanted to be left alone, it ought to leave Ukraine alone. But this much was abundantly clear: as little as Americans trust Vladimir Putin’s motives, Russians are every bit as distrustful of ours.
“How is it America’s business what happens in Ukraine?” Igor asked, his voice rising. “We have centuries of history with Ukraine. Why can’t America just mind its own business there—and in Iraq, and everywhere else?” I continued to sit silently, while Vasya began squirming in his captain’s chair.
<…>
Inevitably, the conversation soon segued to Ukraine. “Do you know the history of Ukraine?” Lyuba asked me, in an echo of Big Igor’s question two weeks earlier. I responded that I had a general idea.
“There is no such thing as Ukraine!” Sergei and Lyuba exclaimed, almost in unison. “Ukraine was invented by Lenin,” Sergei said. “How can America claim it should maintain its independence from Russia, when it has always been Russian?”
“If there is no such thing as Ukraine,” I countered, “then what is the Ukrainian language?” Sergei answered that it was a Slavic language, basically the same as Russian, and only different because there was a mix of people—Poles, Russians, and other Slavs—in those regions. “But it has always, throughout history, been Russia. So what is happening now isn’t anything new or different.”

Наверно мнение некоторых обычных россиян может кому-то представлять интерес, особенно как их мнение менялось на протяжении этих 15-20 лет, но, во-первых, книга не о политике, а во-вторых, книга представляет «туристические заметки», нежели политическую литературу. Я не являюсь большим поклонником таких вот туристических заметок именно по той причине, что невозможно сформировать точное мнение о той или иной стране основываясь на мнении 5-7 человек. Это как если посетить США и спросить мнение о США исключительно фанатов Трампа. Что касается самой страны, то Россия не просматривается у автора по той простой причине, что всё внимание автор уделяет персональным отношениям с теми русскими, с которыми она познакомилась в начале 90-ых.



The book Bears In The Streets is a collection of stories about an American woman who visited Russia three times, meeting the same people she first encountered in the early 1990s (the last meeting dates back to 2014, which, as we know, is famous primarily for the beginning of open confrontation between Russia and the West, which was a consequence of the annexation of Crimea and Russia's involvement in the events in Donbass). These are three stories not so much about the same country (from the 1990s to 2014) as three stories about people whose political views changed in the same direction as Russia's foreign policy. When the author first visited Russia, many Russians were generally friendly toward the United States as a country. However, when she visited again in 2014, she encountered not only ostentatious loyalty to Putin on the part of her Russian acquaintances, but also, in some cases, outright hostility toward the United States. The reason for this is simple: Ukraine.

What interesting things can be found in this book, you may ask? Like any personal opinion, this book is exclusively the author's personal view. Perhaps it was just a coincidence, but for the most part, I did not encounter anyone in the book who spoke critically of Putin. Perhaps this is purely coincidental, or perhaps people in Russia, even at that time, were afraid to openly express their anti-government views, especially given the author's foreign status. It is also possible that in those days, anti-government views were more prevalent in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and, with a few exceptions, the rest of Russia blindly believed in and supported Putin. However, I doubt the veracity of this version. At the same time, I do not believe that this was done deliberately by the author, i.e., I do not believe that she intentionally included only “Putin fans” in her book, especially given the complexity of the book's structure, as the author recounts the story of three meetings with the same people. But in any case, it is sad that most of the people the author of this book knew turned out to be so foolish.

I wasn’t sure, but when I asked Pasha and Vika what they thought of Putin, they responded the same way the lighthouse keepers, Vasily and Valya, had: they loved him.
“I know Americans don’t really like Putin,” Pasha told me, “and that your government blames Russia for what’s happening in Ukraine. But really, America is behind it. Why is America funneling arms to Ukraine? Why is your government always stirring things up in faraway parts of the world?” I didn’t agree with his black-and-white assessment of Ukraine, but I didn’t have a good answer for his final question, either. It’s difficult to defend the notion of “American exceptionalism”— assuming I’d even want to—in a way that doesn’t sound ridiculously self-important. I’m neither an expert on Ukraine, nor am I as well versed in twenty-first-century international relations as I’d like to be. So, for purposes of this trip, I decided that it was smarter simply to listen to what Russians had to say, rather than leaping into arguments.
“The problem,” Vika interjected, “is that America doesn’t respect Russia. They think we’re backward—like we have bears wandering around in the streets here.”
<…>
I asked how her situation now compared to that of 1995 and 2005, and she didn’t hesitate. “Now is better than 20 years ago,” she told me, “but Soviet times were better than now, because you always knew what was what.”
“Meaning?” I asked.
“Back then, you knew the price of everything, what would happen at work, exactly when you could retire, and what your pension would be,” she replied. “Now, everything is more difficult. There are unknowns. There weren’t before.”
<…>
We engaged in small talk for a few minutes, and then he abruptly switched topics.
Liza, what do you know about Ukraine?” he asked. I wasn’t sure how to answer; was this a real question, or a challenge? I didn’t immediately respond, so he tried again: “What do Americans know about Ukraine?” He stared at me, waiting.
“That’s a pretty broad question,” I said.
“Then let me ask you this,” he said. “What if the bears suddenly came to Canada, and started handing out money, paying people there to fight against America? Would you like that? Would that be a good thing?” By “bears,” he obviously meant Russians, and he was setting up an equation: Americans wouldn’t want other countries stirring up trouble on their doorstep, so why should we stir up trouble on Russia’s? Meaning, more specifically, why does America think it’s OK to send guns and money to Ukraine?
“Let me ask you another question,” he said, still staring at me. “How many Russian military bases are near American soil? None. And how many American military bases are near Russia? Many.” This was true: the United States has multiple bases in Japan, South Korea, Turkey, the Middle East, and all over western Europe. “How would Americans like it if Russians had military bases in Canada and Mexico?” Igor asked. “Would they like that?” We both knew the answer: of course not. The Soviets once had a military presence in Cuba, after all, and look how well that had gone. The Russians had closed their base there in 2002, and one didn’t need a top-secret security clearance to know that the American government preferred to keep it that way.
“America wants to spread its influence all over the world,” Big Igor went on. “But we just want to be left alone.” He wasn’t the first to express that sentiment to me on this trip. Both Pasha in Chita and Vasily in Vladivostok had argued the same thing: that Russians want to be left alone, but we Americans keep poking our nose in their business. One could certainly argue that if Russia wanted to be left alone, it ought to leave Ukraine alone. But this much was abundantly clear: as little as Americans trust Vladimir Putin’s motives, Russians are every bit as distrustful of ours.
“How is it America’s business what happens in Ukraine?” Igor asked, his voice rising. “We have centuries of history with Ukraine. Why can’t America just mind its own business there—and in Iraq, and everywhere else?” I continued to sit silently, while Vasya began squirming in his captain’s chair.
<…>
Inevitably, the conversation soon segued to Ukraine. “Do you know the history of Ukraine?” Lyuba asked me, in an echo of Big Igor’s question two weeks earlier. I responded that I had a general idea.
“There is no such thing as Ukraine!” Sergei and Lyuba exclaimed, almost in unison. “Ukraine was invented by Lenin,” Sergei said. “How can America claim it should maintain its independence from Russia, when it has always been Russian?”
“If there is no such thing as Ukraine,” I countered, “then what is the Ukrainian language?” Sergei answered that it was a Slavic language, basically the same as Russian, and only different because there was a mix of people—Poles, Russians, and other Slavs—in those regions. “But it has always, throughout history, been Russia. So what is happening now isn’t anything new or different.”

Perhaps the opinions of some ordinary Russians may be of interest to some, especially how their opinions have changed over the past 15-20 years, but, first of all, the book is not about politics, and secondly, the book is more of a collection of “travel notes” than political literature. I am not a big fan of such travel notes precisely because it is impossible to form an accurate opinion about a country based on the opinions of 5-7 people. It's like visiting the US and asking only Trump fans for their opinion about the US. As for the country itself, Russia is not visible to the author for the simple reason that she focuses all her attention on her personal relationships with the Russians she met in the early 1990s.

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars - what a treat! I laughed, I cried, I empathized, I enjoyed reading about somebody else having crazy travel experiences. And THIS is how you do an overt author presence in a book, people. TAKE NOTE.

[Laura JC · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book. I have an interest in Russia and studied the language briefly, back in the 1970s. (I found that knowing even just the Cyrillic alphabet helped on my visits to Russia in 2011 and 2013.) My first point of admiration for the author is her learning to speak fluent Russian and maintaining or refreshing it over a 20-year period.

During Ms. Dickey's three visits to Russia, each ten years apart, she witnessed changes in the country's economics, popular opinions, living conditions, infrastructure and technical evolutions in telephones, cameras and the internet. I found it all very interesting. She did not hold back from asking people what they thought of President Putin. Being from the USA, she did experience some uncomfortable conversations about the two countries' politics and history.

It was fascinating to read about life in Russia today (well, as late as 2015). I wonder if she will return in 2025, as she said she planned. I hope she writes a sequel.
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One technical flaw and a few typos. The divers wouldn't have been using oxygen tanks but, rather, air tanks (nor were they, in 1995, likely to be using other gases/mixtures). Page 16, "to" missing; page 45, no "of"; page 281, "started".

[D · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book because it felt like mine. Like her I've been 3 times to Russia, once via the Trans-Siberian route. It felt like reconnecting with old friends. That said, it might not be for you. I won't attempt a professional review. I just liked her tone and felt like I was traveling with her. Read other reviews for better advice.

[Chaya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Imagine travelling to a foreign land and meeting interesting people from all walks of life. Imagine you go back 10 years later to catch up, see how their lives have changed, and how they've stayed the same. Then imagine you go back 10 years later. This is the premise of Lisa DIckey's travelogue.
The author set out in 1995 to explore the Russian landscape and more important, its people. She went back in 2005, and then again in 2015, and this book recounts her meetings and re-meetings with the same people she had met beforehand, tracking their changing lives, growth, joys and sorrows.

The title refers to what Russians imagine Americans think of Russia. "Those Americans," they say, "they all think there are bears in the streets in Russia." This amusing expression, which Dickey hears all over her travels, implies that Americans have no idea of the actual Russia as it is. But in a sense, it also illustrates the ignorance that Russians have about Americans, as we don't really say any such thing. This misunderstanding, really a misunderstanding about a misunderstanding, serves as the jumping off point for Dickey's search for actual and varied human beings who inhabit a strange land.

Dickey's travels take her to a Jewish Community in Birobidzhan, Lake Biakhal, Novosibirsk, to Chita in Eastern Siberia, etc. She really pushed the limits of travel, and met people who were at once exactly like us and as foreign as they come. The interest in her travels comes from discovering that these people live lives totally different from ours, but at the same time that these are people who could be your mother, your brother, your cousin. Their views on life, their values, their loves and dislikes, these are the interests Dickey seeks to uncover. In so doing, she gives us a picture of people who have fierce opinions on everything from their own country and president, to our own in the US, and everything in between.

This travel diary offers the best of both worlds for me: reading, and traveling. We get to know the people intimately, as well as hear Dickey's own opinions about those opinions she encounters. This is complicated by Dickey's fear of revealing herself as gay to the people she meets, a fear that is at times substantiated but mostly proven false.

Thank you to the author and publishers for a review copy.

[Iván · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leí este libro por mi interés por la antigua URSS y por Rusia en general. Tras haber viajado varias veces por la antigua URSS y haber leído a otros autores de viajes, cogí este libro con muchas ganas, pero al final me ha dejado bastante indiferente. La autora nos describe sus viajes a Rusia en 1995, 2005 y 2015. Cada década organizó un viaje a Rusia y a partir de ahí vemos la transformación del país y de sus gentes. Nos relata sus encuentros con diferentes personas a lo largo de Rusia y resulta interesante ver como se puede reencontrar de nuevo con casi todas las personas que conoció en su primer viaje. A partir de esos veinte años entre el primer y tercer viaje se va desarrollando el libro. Es un relato de diario de viajes y de encuentros con personas, pero se echa en falta algo de historia (prácticamente inexistente) y contexto para entender las complejidades de Rusia. Me ha entretenido pero a ratos me ha aburrido el formato. La temática, los encuentros y los lugares son desde luego interesantes, pero esperaba mucho más.

[Shwu Peng · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really want to learn more about the country who gave me an impression of being cold and austere. I knew very little. Lisa Dickey gave an insight of Russia where few can offer. She's been tracking her profiles for the past 20 years and it was a very interesting way to present their lives. I can imagine the colossal amount of efforts and work to have written this book. Although it is purely her point of view and based on the several Russians she had chanced upon to interview, it really tells a lot about the country and her people... like what she had concluded, "People are people." There will always be differences but we have way more similarities than what we think. Some stories tugged the heartstrings. Some left me bereft - what really happened? It makes me think a lot more about my own interaction with people and how we can choose to leave our mark in the world.

[Rahul · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book proves Lisa Dickey is a very good storyteller. The book is a page-turner. It does a great job of capturing your attention. Although it is not an authoritative account of how Russia has evolved since the collapse of USSR, it provides a good glimpse into the lives of ordinary Russians.

The basic plot of meeting same set of people once every 10 years for 3 decades is pretty cool!
Looking forward to the 2025 account!!

[Missy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting memoir of a woman who travelled across Russia in 1995, 2005, and 2015, visiting the same families to see how their lives had changed. Easy read and written well. I read it as I traversed through Russia and was especially interested in the chapter which involved Lake Baikal as I went there and was able to stop at one of the places written about in the book. Actually read the book twice on my journey because as I went to the towns she'd written about, I could relate better!

[January Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book for the most part, but it did get a little dull and boring in some places.

[RebL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lisa made three trips across Russia at ten-year intervals...the first in 1995, another in 2005, and the third in 2015...and documented them all. Rather than divide the book into three sections by year, each chapter is about a visit to a particular family in a particular geographic region. This, for the most part, made sense, although sometimes the constant flying through time was confusing.

It is interesting to see how Russia changed over the years from the immediate post-Soviet era to the current Putinism. I hope she does another trip in 2025.

[Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounding up because I enjoyed it and it made me nostalgic and sad.

[Billy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book through a giveaway listed on Goodreads.

Lisa Dickey’s Bears in the Streets is a very entertaining book, and it provides an eye-opening look into modern Russia, something that should be welcomed in this time of tension between the US and Russia. Dickey’s account shows that Russia is a welcoming place, with plenty of wonderful sights and experiences to behold. I was struck by the how much the country had changed in the space of twenty years (reading about this change at ten-year intervals rather than gradually experiencing it may have something to do with this), but upon reflection I realize how much the world has changed in that time frame. The changes have certainly stuck with people, as Dickey writes in the chapter on Moscow:

“As I sat… I pondered how we all love to pine for the old days, building them up in memory as some kind of golden time. Then I took a few photos with my phone, uploaded them instantly… and enjoyed a real-time cross-global conversation….”

Simply put, this is a great book, and I highly recommend it. And spoiler alert: Russia has no more bears wandering the streets than we do.

[Jeffrey Stevenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I received this book I was going to put it on the shelf while I read another book I had planned to read next, but when I peaked inside for a little taste I could not put this book down. Lisa Dickey has a wonderful flow in her writing, I loved the concept including all three visits in each chapter and the insight to another misinterpreted part of the world. It was exciting to see what the changes in these peoples lives over the years would give to them and the country around them. Their thoughts about Putin and their government and the misinformation about America is eye opening. Very good, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will happily recommend it to others.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ever since reading Deep South: Four Seasons on Back Roads by Paul Theroux I realised what was missing from a good travel book was the return trip, going back to see what had changed. So when I saw this book and that it featured three trips in Russia I grabbed a copy and moved it right to the top of my reading list.

This book's main focus is not the travelling, it is about the people Lisa meets and how they have changed over 20 years. Either Russia is full of amazing people or Lisa was lucky with who she met. Lisa's writing is superb, she very quickly draws you in so that you seem to have known the people for years, I found myself eagerly looking forward to her next visit to see how their lives had changed and what highs and lows they had been through. It wasn't just the people, the places Lisa visited had changed in a big way over the years, some were remote and with each visit the places got bigger.

Even though Lisa had been to Russia a few times before she still travelled in 2015 full of the fears that were spread by the media in the west, she feared for her safety in a country full of anti-Americanism....and streets full of wild bears :-)

There are plenty of photos throughout the book, which was nice touch, not only did you get to read about how the people had changed you also got the see the changes. One of the coolest things in the book was to do with the first trip in 1995, the Internet was just kicking off and Lisa created a web travel blog and her partner on the trip carried a huge prototype digital camera and they spent hours uploading photos, pure genius.

I loved this book and I really really really hope in 2025 Lisa goes back to Russia for a 4th time and we get another book out of this.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 rounded up. Excellent travel book. A nice mix of interactions with people, some scenery, some culture. The kind of leisurely travel book full of conversations that I enjoy. Definitely makes me want to go to Russia!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was really interesting to see Russia over a period of 20 years from 1995 right after the breakup of the USSR to 2015. Lisa Dickey traveled with a photographer in 1995 to 11 different cities from the eastern edge of Russia to St Petersburg in the west and they visited a person or family in each city. In 2005 Lisa had the opportunity to make this trip again with a different photographer and in 2015 she made the trip on her own. She visited the same people each time and it was amazing to see the differences in a 30 year span, The book is funny in parts and you get a real sense of the many different cultures.

[Rob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I discovered Bears in the Streets pretty randomly, reading up on the Trans-Siberian Railway and finding an article by Ms. Dickey in the USA Today. The premise was interesting. She had met people during her travels through Russia in 1995, and then revisited most of those people in 2005 and 2015. I actually bought this for a friend, but decided to try the first chapter and was hooked.

The first thing that hooked me was her writing style, which is very readable, very engaging and with a sense of humor that clicked with me. But what I really loved was the peek into the ordinary lives of these people over the three periods and the stories that some of these people shared with her.

In a way, Bears in the Streets reminded of Studs Terkel-like histories. My personal reading is weighted heavily with science fiction and lightly with history, and Ms. Dickey's work reminds me that history is important. I thank her for that reminder and will act on that this year.

I have already recommended this book to several people and will recommend it to you as well. Reading Bears in the Streets was worth my time.

[Theresa Jehlik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lisa Dickey's 20-project gives you a peek into the lives of ordinary Russians at three different points in time -- 1995, 2005, and 2015. She is able to visit all but one of the families initially interviewed in her journeys. Starting from Vladivostok on the border of China and the Sea of Japan and ending ins St. Petersburg near the Baltic Sea, the author interviews Russians of various ages and ethnic backgrounds. Some have prospered while others have barely hung on during the 20 years. Dickey has a knack of drawing interesting character portraits with very few words which leaves the reader free to concentrate on the interactions between them. Two themes run through the book -- most Russians like Vladimir Putin and most Russians believe that Americans think bears still run in the streets throughout Russia. Dickey also learns the meaning behind the phrase, "We hate the American government but we like Americans." Her few forays into discussing politics rarely ended well. Perhaps, it's fitting that the author ends the books with a CBS.com story about a bear wandering through a Los Angeles neighborhood.

[Tamara Curtin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fantastic read. I first arrived in Russia a bit before the author, and worked in an environment much more steeped with Russians than she did. I too had the opportunity to travel the country, although it was with my work. I have returned periodically and connected with some of the same people, and have noticed the same evolution in the economy and opinions.

For me though, what was the most fascinating was seeing the author deal with the kind of bizarro world concepts of the US and the media that I've continuously faced since I never really resettled in the US and have developed a certain level of distance from both countries. Her experiences really brought out how similar these two large nations are, how proud, how determined, how susceptible to whatever nonsense may be spilled out of the mouths of the leaders they trust.