Peter the Great - His Life and World

First published in 1981, this award-winning biography remains a classic study of a quite remarkable character in Russian history. Remembered as an enlightened reformer and a statesman of considerable significance, yet also as a barbarous feudal tsar with a highly volatile temperament, Peter the Great provides the biographer with very rich pickings. Where Massie's volume triumphed over other predecessors, however, was in its extreme breadth of vision - as the Sunday Times remarked... 'by taking an enormous canvas and filling every inch of it with action and description... and in measuring him by the yardstick of that age (Massie) has shown... precisely why this 6ft 7in epileptic was hailed as Petrus Magnus Imperator'. This wonderfully chunky paperback - complete with maps and family tree - has all the components of a gripping novel, and is a must for all history buffs and biography fans, as well as all those who appreciate the rich diversity of Russian culture.