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An Unquiet Heart
From the bestselling author of Philomena comes a beautiful and heartbreaking tale about Sergei Yesenin, one of Russia’s most beloved poets. It vividly captures the extraordinary life of a man navigating love, loss and loneliness in the midst of the Russian Revolution. Sergei Yesenin is a young poet, formed by childhood abandonment, set on becoming the most famous poet in Russia in a time of war, revolution and terror. A sensitive soul in a senseless time, searching for meaning through poetry, fame and passionate affairs with both women and men – until a meeting with the beautiful actress Zinaida Raikh changes everything. ‘If thou art near, I’ll leave all behind, Renounce the world, the call of fame. All I need is to kiss your hand, your lips, And hear you call me by my name.’ His success will bring him to the Tsar’s family, to Rasputin, Trotsky and to the world’s most famous dancer, Isadora Duncan. He befriends other prominent poets and is revered by millions. Schoolchildren learn his verses by heart. Red Army soldiers carry them going into battle. Yuri Gagarin would later take them into space. But Yesenin’s obsession with fame is dangerous and destructive, for him, and for those who love him. An Unquiet Heart is a magnificent insight into history, and into the life of a tender, troubled man. This is a story about the power of poetry in turbulent times, about triumph and tragedy and about how true love never fades.
557 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 16, 2019
8 people are currently reading
130 people want to read
About the author
Martin Sixsmith
29 books104 followersGeorge Martin Sixsmith, British author and journalist.
Sixsmith joined the BBC in 1980 where he worked as a foreign correspondent, most notably reporting from Moscow during the end of the Cold War. He also reported from Poland during the Solidarity uprising and was the BBC's Washington correspondent during the election and first presidency of Bill Clinton. He was based in Russia for five years, the US for four, Brussels for four and Poland for three.
Sixsmith left the BBC in 1997 to work for the newly elected government of Tony Blair. He became Director of Communications (a civil service post), working first with Harriet Harman and Frank Field, then with Alistair Darling. His next position was as a Director of GEC plc, where he oversaw the rebranding of the company as Marconi plc.
In December 2001, he returned to the Civil Service to join the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions as Director of Communications in time to become embroiled in the second act of the scandal over Jo Moore. Moore was special adviser to the transport secretary Stephen Byers and had been the subject of much public condemnation for suggesting that a controversial announcement should be "buried" during the media coverage of the September 11, 2001 attacks.[1]
Sixsmith incurred the displeasure of Downing Street when his email advising Byers and Moore not to bury more bad news was leaked to the press. Number Ten attempted to "resign him", but had later to issue an apology and pay him compensation. Sixsmith was widely expected to write a memoir or autobiography in the wake of his civil service departure, but was gagged by the government[citation needed] Instead, he produced a novel about near-future politics called Spin, published in 2004.
His second novel, I Heard Lenin Laugh, was published in 2005. In 2006 he was commissioned by BBC Radio 4 to present a series of programmes on Russian poetry, literature and art.
In 2007 he wrote The Litvinenko File, an examination of the feud between the Kremlin and Russia's émigré oligarchs.
In 2008 Sixsmith worked on two BBC documentaries exploring the legacy of the KGB in today's Russia and also presented a BBC documentary, The Snowy Streets of St. Petersburg, about artists and writers who fled the former Eastern bloc.
In 2009 he wrote The Lost Child of Philomena Lee, about the forcible separation of a mother and child by the nuns of an Irish convent during the 1950s, and the subsequent attempts of the mother and child to contact one another.[2] The book was adapted into the film Philomena, directed by Stephen Frears, starring Dame Judi Dench and Steve Coogan (as Sixsmith), and written by Coogan and Jeff Pope; it premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was released in the UK on November 1 2013.
In February 2010 Sixsmith wrote Putin's Oil, about Russia's energy wars and their consequences for Moscow and the world.
He worked as an adviser to the BBC political sitcom The Thick of It, and the Oscar-nominated film, In the Loop.
In 2011, he presented Russia: The Wild East, a 50-part history of Russia for BBC Radio 4, the last episode of which was broadcast on 12 August.[3] His book Russia, a 1,000 Year Chronicle of the Wild East was published by Random House.
In 2014 Sixsmith will present a 25 part programme about the history of psychology and psychiatry for the BBC radio.
Sixsmith joined the BBC in 1980 where he worked as a foreign correspondent, most notably reporting from Moscow during the end of the Cold War. He also reported from Poland during the Solidarity uprising and was the BBC's Washington correspondent during the election and first presidency of Bill Clinton. He was based in Russia for five years, the US for four, Brussels for four and Poland for three.
Sixsmith left the BBC in 1997 to work for the newly elected government of Tony Blair. He became Director of Communications (a civil service post), working first with Harriet Harman and Frank Field, then with Alistair Darling. His next position was as a Director of GEC plc, where he oversaw the rebranding of the company as Marconi plc.
In December 2001, he returned to the Civil Service to join the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions as Director of Communications in time to become embroiled in the second act of the scandal over Jo Moore. Moore was special adviser to the transport secretary Stephen Byers and had been the subject of much public condemnation for suggesting that a controversial announcement should be "buried" during the media coverage of the September 11, 2001 attacks.[1]
Sixsmith incurred the displeasure of Downing Street when his email advising Byers and Moore not to bury more bad news was leaked to the press. Number Ten attempted to "resign him", but had later to issue an apology and pay him compensation. Sixsmith was widely expected to write a memoir or autobiography in the wake of his civil service departure, but was gagged by the government[citation needed] Instead, he produced a novel about near-future politics called Spin, published in 2004.
His second novel, I Heard Lenin Laugh, was published in 2005. In 2006 he was commissioned by BBC Radio 4 to present a series of programmes on Russian poetry, literature and art.
In 2007 he wrote The Litvinenko File, an examination of the feud between the Kremlin and Russia's émigré oligarchs.
In 2008 Sixsmith worked on two BBC documentaries exploring the legacy of the KGB in today's Russia and also presented a BBC documentary, The Snowy Streets of St. Petersburg, about artists and writers who fled the former Eastern bloc.
In 2009 he wrote The Lost Child of Philomena Lee, about the forcible separation of a mother and child by the nuns of an Irish convent during the 1950s, and the subsequent attempts of the mother and child to contact one another.[2] The book was adapted into the film Philomena, directed by Stephen Frears, starring Dame Judi Dench and Steve Coogan (as Sixsmith), and written by Coogan and Jeff Pope; it premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was released in the UK on November 1 2013.
In February 2010 Sixsmith wrote Putin's Oil, about Russia's energy wars and their consequences for Moscow and the world.
He worked as an adviser to the BBC political sitcom The Thick of It, and the Oscar-nominated film, In the Loop.
In 2011, he presented Russia: The Wild East, a 50-part history of Russia for BBC Radio 4, the last episode of which was broadcast on 12 August.[3] His book Russia, a 1,000 Year Chronicle of the Wild East was published by Random House.
In 2014 Sixsmith will present a 25 part programme about the history of psychology and psychiatry for the BBC radio.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
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December 6, 2021Got 60% in but decided to DNF it. The subject matter is interesting but I felt like no matter how much I read from it, O didn't get any further. And it's not a very long ebook. Maybe a book I'll pick up some other time but for now it's a DNF
February 20, 2024
There was nothing that I didn’t like about this book- although a pre-existing interest in early 20th century russia is probably required to make it to the end. The delivery was brilliant, could be a model for biographical novels. Immensely readable
August 12, 2025
A fascinating read giving insights into the Russian psyche as well as the human story of the arts and society in revolutionary Russia. Current parallels are disturbing!!
May 22, 2021
An Unquiet Heart has fed me to my very soul, magnificent, an epic story that held me to the very last page, Martin Sixsmith I thank you from the bottom of my heart for creating a Masterpiece such as this ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
January 29, 2025
"The animals were his siblings; the sub and rain, the moon, the night his interlocutors. He spoke to them and they spoke back" Page 6
"In this life we get just a handful of chances for happiness, and we need to seize them" Page 75
"And poetry is power, Seryozha. The power to charm people, to shape their choices and mould their lives. It was poetry that convinced the empress to help you. Russia is the country, of all countries, where poetry matters. Don't belittle that, Seryozha" Page 85
" 'Look at it this way,' Marienhof said. 'Life can be good; life can be bad. Detach yourself. Life is just fuel for your poetry. Art is the philosopher's stone that transmutes existence. Do it and you will find meaning.' " Page 141
" 'Then what must we do with our lives?' Sergei said. 'Changing scenery, changing beds, changing bodies. What's the point? The time for dreaming is short. There's no love; there's no place left to live or belong. I shall have passed like a whisper and I shall sleep like the ice. Is this how men live?' 'Yes,' said Marienhof. 'And there's only one way to avenge ourselves on the whole stupid joke. We must take our life and squeeze its neck until it sings. Art is our revenge.' 'So we accept the tragedy? We embrace the role?' 'Yes' " Page 157
"The world was frozen in darkness, but fire had been lit with the power to thaw his heart" Page 197
"In this life we get just a handful of chances for happiness, and we need to seize them" Page 75
"And poetry is power, Seryozha. The power to charm people, to shape their choices and mould their lives. It was poetry that convinced the empress to help you. Russia is the country, of all countries, where poetry matters. Don't belittle that, Seryozha" Page 85
" 'Look at it this way,' Marienhof said. 'Life can be good; life can be bad. Detach yourself. Life is just fuel for your poetry. Art is the philosopher's stone that transmutes existence. Do it and you will find meaning.' " Page 141
" 'Then what must we do with our lives?' Sergei said. 'Changing scenery, changing beds, changing bodies. What's the point? The time for dreaming is short. There's no love; there's no place left to live or belong. I shall have passed like a whisper and I shall sleep like the ice. Is this how men live?' 'Yes,' said Marienhof. 'And there's only one way to avenge ourselves on the whole stupid joke. We must take our life and squeeze its neck until it sings. Art is our revenge.' 'So we accept the tragedy? We embrace the role?' 'Yes' " Page 157
"The world was frozen in darkness, but fire had been lit with the power to thaw his heart" Page 197
August 18, 2021
An interesting blend of fiction and biography with a folk-like feel to the narrative voice. Yesenin's struggles over balancing art, fame, and having money to live on are ones that are still relevant today, especially for any creative person. The central question seems to be what are you willing to sacrifice for your work.
June 27, 2023
Fascinating story about the poet Yesenin and the beginn8ng of the Soviet Union. However I felt that, as a novel, the dialogue did not contribute much to the story and it would have been better as just a history book
September 28, 2019
Interesting.
January 6, 2022
Dnf...just wasn't for me!
April 5, 2024
Istruttivo e ben scritto.
Un romanzo in cui la storia è parte integrante.
Poeta maledetto, ma amato dalle folle.
Un romanzo in cui la storia è parte integrante.
Poeta maledetto, ma amato dalle folle.
February 22, 2025
i hate sergei but love him at the same time
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews