Secondhand Time: The Last of the SovietsSecondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets
Score Modern
What it's about
Nobel laureate Svetlana Alexievich spent years recording ordinary Russians talking about the collapse of the Soviet Union and the chaos that followed: veterans, shopkeepers, former Party members, refugees, grieving mothers, people who mourned communism and people who cheered its fall. Woven together, their voices make an oral history of what it felt like to live through the end of one world and the uncertain start of another.
Why it's worth reading
No other book lets you hear an entire society thinking aloud. It explains modern Russia better than most analysis, and its voices are unforgettable: funny, bitter, nostalgic and heartbreaking.
You'll love it if you liked
Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea
Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern IrelandGood to know
It's long, over 600 pages, and made entirely of interviews with no narrator guiding you. Many readers take it a few voices at a time. Some accounts describe violence and suicide.
By the numbers
- Readers98 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics85 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller30 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz4 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #10 of the 290 memoirs and biographies we rank
- #23 of the 1,573 modern books we rank
- #46 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
True story
More by Svetlana Alexievich
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Quick answers
Is Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets worth reading?
Yes. No other book lets you hear an entire society thinking aloud. It ranks #46 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 89.3 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets about?
Nobel laureate Svetlana Alexievich spent years recording ordinary Russians talking about the collapse of the Soviet Union and the chaos that followed: veterans, shopkeepers, former Party members, refugees, grieving mothers, people who mourned communism and people who cheered its fall. Woven together, their voices make an oral history of what it felt like to live through the end of one world and the uncertain start of another.
How long does it take to read Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets?
About 12 hours (496 pages), or about 3 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets?
If you liked it, try Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick, Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 by Tony Judt or Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe.