Author Douglas Smith: "Rasputin"
Faith, Power and the Twilight of the Romanovs
In preparing a Mention of the book “Rasputin” by Douglas Smith, I intended to include this lecture by the author. I had forgotten just how good this lecture was and I didn’t want it to be overlooked so I am posting this as a prelude to my next item.
What better way to describe a book than through Douglas Smith’s own words:
· Author Douglas Smith: Rasputin - Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory
Smith: “He was neither the devil, nor was he a saint”
To whet your appetite, here is the review by Robert K Massie from the front endsheet. (I have Mentioned several of Massie’s books on the Romanovs previously.)
This brilliantly written, meticulously researched account of the life of Rasputin is the best, most complete and accurate I have read. Step by step, day by day, week by week in this life, Douglas Smith tells the story from its humble beginnings, through its obscene sexual chapters, to its violent end. He describes how a peasant became “Our Friend” to the last emperor and empress of Russia. He explains why this dependency came at terrible cost for the imperial couple, for their children, for Russia, and for the twentieth-century world. Readers will begin by saying that this is an impossible story to believe. They will read on, because in Douglas Smith’s mesmerizing telling, it must be believed. And because it did happen.
I recommend Maria Rasputin's book. She was his daughter.
Rasputin: The Man Behind the Myth
I watched this book talk and it was excellent. He has such a nice, down to earth style. Very intriguing, that a key example of Rasputin's debauchery never happened, as confirmed by the diary of the eyewitness saying he was in Kiev that night. Glad to have you following this trail, Julius.
Oh, you might have seen that both kitten and I recommended your stack to Pasheen of Diva Drops, who had mentioned the Romanovs. So many lines of research converging!