Midnight in Siberia: A Train Journey into the Heart of Russia

I am glad I procrastinated in reading David Greenes Midnight in Siberia until after the 2016 election. I originally bought the book after hearing discussions about it on NPR; I have a passion for trains and at least a passing interest in Russia. How could I not read a book about the Trans-Siberian Railway? But I let it sit in my queue for many months. I read J.D. Vances Hillbilly Elegy. The parallels between Greenes and Vances books intrigued me. What struck me most while reading the book is how similar rural Russia is the rural America, and how disconnected, and perhaps disaffected, people who live there are from their respective capitals and few urban centers of power and influence. Just as Greene makes a case for there being two Russias, Vance makes the case for two Americas. I enjoyed Greenes lively story-telling and his ability to create a scene and pull me in, as though I were there. In the end, what I will take away from this book as that we humans, Russian and American, are so much more alike than we are different, our most fundamental hopes and challenges the same, and that our collective ethos and worldview is definitely shaped by the history, heritage and myths of a nations birth and struggles. Worth the read.

An engaging, readable account of the author’s experiences traveling through Russia via the Trans-Siberian Railway. I read this book while traveling across Russia by rail myself (I did the “reverse” trip, from Vladivostok to Moscow), and it was a good travel companion for that journey. Nevertheless, I did find the book annoyingly simplistic at times, both in the author’s viewpoints and in his writing style. There’s a real “aw, shucks, I had no idea Russians were so complicated!” attitude that struck me as simultaneously naive, disingenuous, and distressingly American — and quite surprising, given that he was a foreign correspondent for NPR. He keeps evincing surprise that Russians are not embracing “freedom” and “democracy” as he expected them to, but his own conceptions of American “freedom” seem pretty firmly rooted in his white male privilege. I’d love to see Greene do a similar trip across the U.S. to shake up some of his verities about his own country. And I often found myself wishing his editor had just taken a firmer hand with the prose. Some of the dialogue in particular is just really stilted. Nevertheless, it was an enjoyable read, and I’d recommend it to anyone who’s taking (or considering taking) the Trans-Siberian Railway.

I thoroughly enjoyed David Greene’s personal and thorough analysis of average Russian people whom he met and spoke with, and in many cases became good friends with. It was a refreshing outlook normally not available to the average world citizen. Without preconceived ideas of your average Russian, Mr. Greene brought to life an outlook which many readers totally benefit from. Thanks for sharing your valuable, intelligent opinions, as well as true facts.

Book arrived on time and in good shape. Good condition for used paperback book. Narrative provides great armchair travel experience about world’s longest train trip. Superb expose of the Russian people living along the route of the Trans-Siberian. Accompanied by a map-type rendering of the route and 30 black and white photos. A cold, snowy journey across Siberia. Excellent commentary about Irkutsk, not much depth about Vladivostok.

A very heartwarming view of different folks David and Sergei met on two trips on the Trans-Siberian. While these interviews are not representative of Russian culture as a monolith, I find the perspective very thought-provoking. All humans want a better life for their family, Russians are no different. Thank you David for a great read. I will keep on my shelf and re-read again.

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