Edward Rutherford was an English writer, the author of international bestsellers 'London,' 'Dublin,' 'Ireland,' 'New York,' 'Paris,' and others. The pages of 'Russian,' a novel about Russia, unfold over nearly two thousand years, intertwining and intertwining real historical figures and fictional characters. Having studied a vast amount of literature, he sketches significant milestones in broad strokes, capturing the most dramatic events of history and the place of man within them. Russian literature serves as Rutherford's guide through the centuries, providing a model for his characters and their relationships. Rutherford's perspective is, of course, that of a foreigner, yet another 'traveller to Rus'': observing, studying, seeking to establish cause and effect, sincerely seeking to understand. This novel, conceived and completed during a turning point in Russian history and capturing the country as the writer saw it in the late 1980s, has become part of history today. It speaks to a theme important to the author: no matter how many difficult trials the country and its people endure, it rises again, like a phoenix.