Massies book is no exception, although peter himself remains as enigmatic as ever. He died on december 2, 2019 in irvington, new york, usa. He devoted much of his career to studying and writing about the house of romanov, russias imperial family from 16 to 1917. Massie, the life and times of peter the great are unfolded as a vast and panoramic narrative, an evocation of the man and his world within the many spheres of activity by. It won three primetime emmy awards, including the award for outstanding miniseries. Serendipity can be the authors best friend, with robert massie.
The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 909 pages and is available in paperback format. Massie wrote readable and respected biographies of russian royals, including. Massiealso available are nicholas and alexandra and the romanovs. From the modern librarys new set of beautifully repackaged hardcover classics by robert k. In 1975, robert massie and his thenwife suzanne chronicled their experiences as the parents of a hemophiliac child and the significant differences between the american and french healthcare systems in their jointly written book, journey. Massies book on peter the great is a thorough biography that reads like a good novel. Peter the great is not only the story of peters life and russian history, but encompasses the entire european theater during the late 1600s and early 1700s when peter was on the throne.
Robert k massie has written not just one of the best biographies of peter the great, tsar of all the russias, but one of the best biographies out there. The main characters of this biography, history story are peter the great, louis xiv of france. The compelling story of the man who created modern russia, founded st petersburg and made his country part of europe great lives series by robert k. I have read historical accounts about the life of this exceptional visionary including the classic peter the first by the russian writer alexy tolstoy. Massie was born in lexington, kentucky, and studied american history at yale and european history at oxford, which he attended as a rhodes scholar. Portrait of a woman, which won the 2012 andrew carnegie medal for excellence in nonfiction. Massie was born in versailles, kentucky, to robert massie, jr. His books include nicholas and alexandra, peter the great. Massie, who went on to publish sprawling biographies of peter the great and catherine the great as well as two indepth naval histories of world war i, winning praise for the pageturning. The first edition of the novel was published in 1980, and was written by robert k. Massie was born on january 5, 1929 in lexington, kentucky, usa as robert kinloch massie iii.
Portrait of a woman by robert k massie is the extraordinary story of an obscure young german princess who travelled to russia at the tender age of fourteen and rose to become one of the most powerful, and captivating women in history. Born in versailles, kentucky, massie spent much of his youth there and in nashville, tennessee. Massie delves deep into the life of this captivating historical figure, chronicling the pivotal events that shaped a boy into a legend including his incognito travels in europe, his unquenchable curiosity about western ways, his obsession with the sea and establishment of the stupendous russian navy, his creation of an unbeatable. Massiealso available are nicholas and alexandra and the. Massie delves deep into the life of this captivating historical figure, chronicling the pivotal events that shaped a boy into a legendincluding his incognito travels in europe, his. Massie 1929 is een prominent amerikaans historicus.
Dec 02, 2019 likened to david mccullough and edmund morris as a popularizer of history, robert k. In a work of extraordinary narrative power, filled with brilliant personalities and vivid scenes of dramatic action, robert k. Robert kinloch massie was an american historian, writer, winner of a pulitzer prize, and a rhodes scholar. Massie also available are nicholas and alexandra and the romanovs against the monumental canvas of seventeenth and eighteenthcentury europe and russia unfolds the magnificent story of peter the great, crowned cotsar at the age of ten. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read catherine the great. Written in a flowing, easy to read style, the work describes the life and times that peter lived through, allowing us, the reader to picture the scenes that peter is moving through. This is the first in the series of three works by robert massie detailing the lives of russian tsars.
Massie will deliver the annual leon levy biography lecture. Portrait of a woman reveals about the russian empressed, recently portrayed by helen mirren on hbo. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read peter the great. Massie, the pulitzer prizewinning author of peter the great, nicholas and alexandra, and dreadnought, elevates to its proper historical importance the role of sea power in the winning of the great war. Ballantine books 1981 soft cover in very good condition. Born in 1672, with little chance of attaining the throne of muscovy, peter finds himself at. Against the monumental canvas of seventeenth and eighteenthcentu. Massie, narrator of russian history, is dead at 90. Massie sad to say, at present we really do not have details about the actual musician robert k. The american dreams of laura ingalls wilder, by caroline fraser metropolitan books. A deeply researched and elegantly written portrait of laura ingalls wilder, author of the little house on the prairie series, that describes how wilder transformed her familys story of poverty, failure and struggle into an uplifting tale of selfreliance, familial love and perseverance. Massie is 82, he is already thinking ahead to his next one. Massie shows peter, his agonies and triumphs, personal and political. He wrote biographies of some of the most fascinating characters in russian history.
Jul 03, 2012 catherine the great by robert k massie. Massie constructed his biography of catherine the great relying heavily on material from her memoirs now published by random house under the title the memoirs of catherine the great, which provided him with rare, honest views of an eighteenth century royals life. He was a writer, known for nicholas and alexandra 1971, peter the great 1986 and the mike douglas show 1961. Massie wrote epic page turners on two outsize czars. The acclaimed author of catherine the great, robert k.
In this video i talk about his four books on russian history, my thoughts on all of them, and where i. Massie as his meticulously researched biography of peter the great, his life and world really is a breathtaking journey back into the russia of the seventeenth and eighteenth century, warts and all. His life and world examines how a largerthanlife force of nature turns medieval muscovy into modern russia by force of arms, importation of talent, and harsh discipline. Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. Feb 08, 2012 where do authors get their story ideas. Massie delves deep into the life of this captivating historical figure, chronicling the pivotal events that shaped a boy into a legendincluding his. Massie was awarded the 1981 pulitzer prize for biography for peter the great. Against the monumental canvas of seventeenth and eighteenthcentury europe and russia, unfolds the magnificent story of peter the great, crowned at the age of 10.
Please use this display as a guideline and modify as needed. Robert massie, author who popularized russian history, dead at 90. It is the great length of robert massie s peter the great that makes it such a joy to read. Massie captivated audiences with detailed accounts that read to many like engrossing novels. Dec 02, 2019 in monumental biographies of peter the great 16721725, catherine the great 172996 and czar nicholas ii and czarina alexandra, who were assassinated with their five children and others in 1918, mr. Born in kentucky and raised in tennessee, massie studied at yale and at oxford, where he was a rhodes scholar. Mr massie demonstrates the intricacies of the confluence of culture. Robert kinloch massie iii january 5, 1929 december 2, 2019 was an american journalist and historian. Over the course of his lengthy publishing career, massie has worked with some of the best editors in the business, including robert gottlieb on peter the great and bob loomis, to whom catherine the great is dedicated. It was followed by nicholas and alexandra and catherine the great. Sep 19, 2017 robert k massie has written not just one of the best biographies of peter the great, tsar of all the russias, but one of the best biographies out there. Massies new book, a biography of catherine the great, is out this week, and although mr.
Massie winner of the pulitzer prize against the monumental canvas of seventeenth and eighteenthcentury europe and russia unfolds the magnificent story of peter the great. Robert massies peter the great is an elegantlywritten work which not only provides abundant and overflowing information about the great man, but which, like no other book, transports the reader into the world of late 17th century and early 18th century russia. Massie, narrator of russian history, is dead at 90 mr. His life and world is a 1980 work written by robert k.
Massie delves deep into the life of this captivating historical figure, chronicling the pivotal events that shaped a boy into a legendincluding his incognito travels in europe, his unquenchable curiosity about western ways, his obsession with the sea and establishment of the stupendous russian navy, his creation of an. Nonetheless, wed take pleasure in if you have just about any details about that, and so are wanting to give it. Against the monumental canvas of seventeenth and eighteenth century europe and russia, unfolds the magnificent story of peter the. A book that has been read but is in good condition. He was president of the authors guild from 1987 to 1991. Aug 25, 2016 ever been curious to read some russian history, specifically by historian robert k. Sep 18, 2012 from the modern librarys new set of beautifully repackaged hardcover classics by robert k. Massie won the 1981 pulitzer prize for biography for peter the great. Peter the great is a historical figure, a maker of the modern world. The most important of these pavilions was mon plaisir, which peter preferred to all his other country houses. Tis book brings alive the medieval russia of his birth.
Peter the great, his life and world by massie, robert k. The pulitzer prizewinning author of peter the great, nicholas and alexandra, and the. Peter the great is an american historical drama television miniseries that aired on nbc from february 25, 1986 and starring maximilian schell as russian emperor peter the great, and based on the biography by robert k. Massiealso available are nicholas and alexandra and the romanovs against the monumental canvas of seventeenth and eighteenthcentury europe and russia unfolds the magnificent story of peter the great, crowned cotsar at the age of ten. Massie, the pulitzer prizewinning author of peter the great, nicholas and alexandra, and dreadnought, elevates to its proper historical importance the role of sea power in the winning of the great. According to robert massie, who wrote the bestselling biography, catherine the great. The dust jacket for hard covers may not be included. The book won the 1981 pulitzer prize for biography or autobiography. Published during the cold war, the book and subsequent hollywood film was a hit, allowing massie to write fulltime. Massie s new book, a biography of catherine the great, is out this week, and although mr. These citations may not conform precisely to your selected citation style.
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