Search Results: Authors starting with R from Bookvica

Moscow: Fizkul'tura i turizm, 1934. 112 pp.: ill. 17x12,5 cm. In original illustrated wrappers. Tears of spine with fragment lost, covers partly detached from block, few tears of last pages, otherwise very good and clean internally. First edition. Very rare. Cover design was created by E. Konvalevskii and A. Ladin. A cover photomontage is dedicated to competitive running, the first of 14 kinds of sport displayed in this book. Pictures are provided by photographers S. Krasinskii and I. Figurov. Unlike this edition, the second one (1935) came out with a drawn design. This reference book witnessed the beginning of All-Union sport statistics. The Unified Sports Classification System of the USSR was established in 1935 and then the title Master of Sports of the USSR was formed. The compiler, Pavel Ratov (1896-1959) was a Soviet athlete participating in discus throwing and pentathlon, a judge of the all-Union category (1934), Honored Master of Sports of the USSR (1946). In this edition, Ratov compares… Read More

Moscow: Trud i kniga, 1929. 127, [1] pp. 22x15 cm. In original publisher's wrappers. Tears of the spine and extremities, otherwise in good condition. Scarce. 1 of 5,000 copies. AN INTERESTING SOVIET MANUAL ON THE WAYS OF INCREASING MENTAL ACTIVITY WRITTEN BY THE VICTIM OF SOVIET REPRESSIONS JOSEPH REBELSKY IN 1929. The establishment of the Communist regime posed new challenges to the Soviet Society. Political authorities expected a "New Soviet Man and Woman" to develop qualities that would reflect surrounding circumstances of post-scarcity and unprecedented scientific development. As a result, one of the central places in the 'construction' of the new Soviet society was given to the problem of mental activity and its improvement mechanisms. Against this background, along with the birth of such efficiency-worshipping organizations as the League of Time, the Soviet reality witnessed the emergence of numerous editions dedicated to the subject matter. Written in 1929, this book represents an… Read More

Moscow: Zemlya i Fabrika, 1928. 324, [2] pp. 21x15 cm. In original illustrated oversized wrappers. Small tears of the wrappers, Soviet bookshop stamp on the back cover. 1 of 6000 copies. First translation. Cover design by P. Miturich. Pyotr Vasilievich Miturich (1887-1956), Russian artist. In 1910-1920 was close with such artists like Tatlin, Punin, Bruni, futurists and poet Velimir Khlebnikov (was married to his sister artist Vera Khlebnikova). John Reed is best remembered for his first-hand account of the Bolshevik Revolution, Ten Days That Shook the World - much loved by Lenin and consequently by Soviet people. Reed died in Russia in 1920, and was buried at the Kremlin Wall Necropolis, one of only two Americans to have been given this honor in Russia, the other being labor organizer Bill Haywood. The book developed from his experience, he has traveled the spring of 1905 as a war correspondent for Russia and the Balkans. Traveling to Russia, Reed was outraged to learn that the ambassador in… Read More

Moscow: Krasnaia Nov', 1923. 315, [1], 4 pp. 23,5x15,5 cm. Original illustrated wrappers by Sergei Chekhonin. A few small bits of the spine missing, the front wrapper is restored (the right bottom corner is missing, not affecting the image). Overall a very good copy. First edition. Extremely rare, especially comparing to the editions of 1924 and 1925. The iconic book by the American journalist and socialist John Reed (1887-1920) about the October Revolution in Russia in 1917, which Reed experienced firsthand. Reed followed many of the prominent Bolshevik leaders closely during his time in Russia. John Reed died shortly after the book was finished, and he is one of the few Americans buried at the Kremlin Wall Necropolis in Moscow, a site normally reserved only for the most prominent Soviet leaders. This edition was prepared after the direct instruction from Lenin, who has praised the book in the preface, mentioning that ''this book I would like to see in million copies printed and translated to all… Read More

Moscow: Gos. izd, 1921. 140 pp. In original wrappers. Very good, signature on the front cover and t.p., some tears of the spine, small part of the front cover is detached from the spine. First edition. Scarce. A collection of plays against religion and capitalism. Printed in 1921, this book represents a collection of 6 satirical plays written by the noted Russian scientist, lawyer, and playwright Mikhail Reisner (1868-1928). The edition, which was aimed at enhancing the socialist and revolutionary spirit of Russian society, houses plays dedicated to the pillars of Bolshevik politics - antireligion and the vices of the capitalist world. The collection includes the following dramaturgical works: Vselenskaya birzha [i.e. Universal Market], Kak Ivan-durak pravdu iskal [i.e. How Ivan the Fool Sought the Truth], Nebesnaya mekhanika [i.e. Celestial Mechanics], Yesli kapital pobedit [i.e. If Capital Wins], Tri Iisusa [i.e. Three Jesuses], and Prorok [i.e. Prophet]. In the preface to the edition, the author… Read More

Moscow: Ogiz - Molodaya gvardiya, 1932. 79, [2] pp., [1] portrait: ill. 20x14 cm. In original illustrated publisher's cardboards. Minor tears at the hinges, spine rubbed. Otherwise a very good internally clean copy. Scarce. Third edition. First and second editions published in 1924 and 1925 respectively. Foreword by G. Eichler. A rare eye-witness account of the Hamburg uprising (1923) compiled by the Russian writer and revolutionary Larissa Reissner (1895-1926). Constructivist cardboard design and black-and-white illustrations throughout by the noted Russian graphic artist, caricaturist, and illustrator Lev Brodaty (1889-1954). Born in Poland, the artist studied in the Vienna art school and the Academy of Fine Arts (1909). Following the WWI, Brodaty settled in Petrograd and soon became actively engaged in the creation of posters for the Petrograd ROSTA Windows (the Russian telegraph agency which published the first Soviet propaganda posters). In 1918, Lev established one of the first Soviet… Read More

Moskva; Leningrad: Gizlegprom, 1932. 58, [2] pp. 19.9x13.1 cm. In original publisher's wrappers. Tears of the spine, loss of the small pieces at the lower right corner of the front wrapper and title page, loose. Otherwise good. Scarce. First edition. Translated from English by S. Elina. This interesting book about typography ink was aimed at assisting the wide printing masses of different specialties, as well as promoting technical knowledge among courses of printers, schools, and printing companies that were scattered across the Soviet Union. Published in 1932, the text is the Russian translation of the 12th issue of a popular serial edition produced by the American Printers' Fellowship and written by F. Rexton. The book can be divided into three sections. In the first section, the author focuses on such topics as the composition of typography inks (oils, pigments, driers, etc.), the production of typography inks (including the ratios between paints and paper), different ways of determining the… Read More

Moscow: tipo-lit. t-va I.N. Kushnerev i K°, 1914. 7 pp., 4 ill. 28x19.5 cm. In original publisher's wrappers. Soiling of the wrappers, loss of the upper left piece of the front wrapper, loss of the pieces of the spine, pencil markings on the wrappers, several pages detached. Otherwise a good internally clean copy. First edition. AN EXTREMELY RARE PRE-REVOLUTIONARY EDITION DEDICATED TO THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST AERODYNAMIC INSTITUTE IN EUROPE. Interest in the study of aerodynamics in the Russian Empire emerged in the 18th century, when the members of the Russian Academy of Science Leonhard Euler (1707-1783) and Daniel Bernoulli (1700-1782) developed the basic principle of the lift. In the following centuries, Russian aerodynamics experienced a leap forward, mainly due to the contribution of the Father of Russian Aviation Nikolay Zhukovsky (1833-1895) and the scientist Dimitri Riabouchinsky (1882-1962). In 1904, Riabouchinsky, with the financial aid of Zhukovsky, established the first… Read More

Moscow: Voennoe izdatel'stvo Narodnogo Komissariata Oborony, 1945. 226, [2] pp. 20x13,5 cm. In original cardboards with letterpress design by V. Selenginskii. Binding rubbed, bumped and soiled, ink stain on upper edge, tears of t.p. along the spine repaired, some sections partly detached from each other, otherwise good. Wartime and the only Russian edition. The book passed censorship on March 1, 1945. The work by German-American journalist Kurt Riess was translated from English by G. Vladimirskii. Feeling the upcoming victory, the Soviet Jewish journalist David Zaslavskii occasionally argues with the author in the foreword: "According to Kurt Riess, the Hitlerites had the best information about the war at this stage. Meanwhile, they lost the war. 'Total espionage' hasn't helped them... Is it actually that strong? Didn't it discover its weaknesses in the same way as the Hitlerites' strategy, their tactics, propaganda, foreign and domestic policies saw them? Hitler's total espionage suffered a… Read More

[Leningrad]: Kirja, [1929]. 119 pp. 21.13x14.4 cm. In original publisher's wrappers. Tears of the spine, pencil markings on the title-page. Otherwise in a very good condition. First edition. Scarce. One of 4,000 copies. The first textbooks of the Finnish language in Russia emerged in the second half of the 19th century, shortly after Finland was annexed by Tsar Alexander I in 1809. Although by 1897 the Finns constituted a significant part of the minorities in the Russian Empire (mostly Leningrad, Karelia, and Siberia where the Finns emigrated), the dissemination of Finnish was mostly backed by the Lutheran church and often contradicted Imperial policy of nationalization. The situation changed drastically in the early-1920s when the newly-established Soviet state adopted the strategy of indigenization at the XII Congress of the RCP in 1923. The policy, which envisaged overcoming global inequality, resulted in 'Finnish boom': over 60 Finnish village councils and 286 primary and 14 secondary Finnish… Read More

Moscow: OGIZ, 1931. 86 [2] pp.: ill.17,5x12,5 cm. In original illustrated wrappers. Tears of the wrappers and spine, damp stain on the lower margin of several pages. Otherwise good. With 13 photographs in the text. In 1926 expedition leaded by G.A. Ushakov came to Wrangel island. They were the first people to live in newly founded settlement Ushakovskoye. There were 59 people on the island, mostly eskimos who lived previously in other villages (on the mainland). Polar station was set up here. In 1928 The icebreaker Fyodor Litke (in honour of the Arctic explorer Fyodor Petrovich Litke) came to the island with an expedition. During the expedition ice was blocking the way to the island and the ship was often on shallow but the ship was able to come to the island from the north west. They were the first ever to do it. The discovered way from the north was very important for future expedition and navigation. Expedition and discoveries regarding the ship and island are described in this book. Two other… Read More

Moscow: Rabotnik prosveshcheniya, 1930. 120 pp. In original printed wrappers. Partly uncut. Very good. First edition. Scarce. A research on religious dissemination in Soviet schools. The charter of the Unified Labor School in the Soviet Union completely excluded the possibility of teaching the doctrine of Christianity and familiarizing with the rites of a religious cult. One of the criteria for the competition for the best teacher in 1923 was an active desire to eradicate religious prejudice from the classroom. By the end of the 1920s, the wave of the struggle against religiosity among children began to grow rapidly: in 1928, a compulsory anti-religious hour was introduced in schools and the corresponding theme began to fill the ABCs and books in elementary grades. Yet, the teaching corps turned out not to be prepared for the propaganda of militant atheism. Religious beliefs were still strong and many educators attended church, sold crosses to students and convinced them of the divine origin of… Read More

Moscow: Izd-vo i 2-ya tip. Gos. izd-va arkhitektury i gradostroitel'stva, 1950. 135 pp.: ill. 22x14.4 cm. In original publisher's wrapper with a photograph mounted to the front wrapper. Near fine. Very rare. First edition. 1 of 5,000 copies. An interesting post-war Soviet edition dedicated to the architecture of metal fences. Written by the Soviet author Sergey Rozenblyum in 1950, this book offers a thorough analysis of the construction of metal fences in different cities of the Soviet Union (with the focus on Moscow and Leningrad). In the introduction to the edition, Rozenblyum defines the principle rule of the art products' architecture: "When creating fences in Soviet conditions, the design should be based on the requirements of the ideological content." The publication consists of four sections: "External metal fences," "Metal fences - elements of the house," "Manufacture and installation of fences," and "Practical fencing issues." From the processing methods to the peculiarities of the… Read More

Derzhavne Vydavnytstvo Ukrainy, 1925. 44, [4] pp. 23 x 14 cm. Original publisher's illustrated wrappers. In Ukrainian. One of 10 000 copies. Two-colour illustrated wrapper, designed by an anonymous artist. Depicting early and modern farming methods. Good condition. Minor cover soiling. Light damp stain to the bottom of the brochure. Creases of p. 37-44. Back of the title and p. 33 shows the Derzhavna Publichna Biblioteka URSR stamp with blank inventory number - the book was discarded before entering the library system during Soviet times. Oleksander L'vovych Rubinshtein (1885 - ?) was an Odesa-based Ukrainian and later Soviet journalist and screenwriter of at least 5 films, active also as lecturer and educator. Rubinshtein's only mention is in: Scenaristy` sovetskogo xudozhestvennogo kino. 1917-1967: Spravochnik (Moskva: Gosfil`mofond SSSR, 1972; p. 312). The book is one of Rubinshtein's educational works: with a considerably large run, lots of illustrations and easy text, its aim was to tell a… Read More

New York: New Section of Foreign Language Information Service of American National Red Cross, 1920. 110 pp. 8vo. In original publisher's wrappers. Few tears and losses of the spine, owner's label on the front cover, light soiling of the wrappers. First edition. Text in Russian. Added title page, foreword, table of contents, and lists of educational institutions in English. With an appendix on how the Russian immigrants can make use of the American Educational System. Foreword by Hon. P.P. Claxton.  In this book author focused on such topics as Origin of American school system, Financial resources for education, schools, colleges, Equality of educational opportunities for all, School life. The edition is supplied with appendix - How Russians can make use of the American educational system, How to get a free technical and trade education in America, How to get training as agricultural instructor, How Russians can get a high school and college training, including a small guide to educational… Read More

Moscow: Goslitizdat, 1935. 153, [5] pp.: ill. 21.3x15.2 cm. In original publisher's cloth binding with gilt lettering and ornaments on the front board and the spine. Very light soiling of the binding. Otherwise near fine. Scarce. First edition. Design by the Soviet graphic artist and book illustrator of German origin Leo Epple (1900-1980). In the 1920s, the artist attended the studio of Dmitry Kardovsky and collaborated with a number of Soviet periodicals. In 1941, Leo was repressed on ethnic grounds and exiled to the Karaganda region. In 1952, after residing in a number of cities, Epple received permission to move to Sverdlovsk without the right to leave. During his career, the artist illustrated works of classic and modern writers, including the tales of A. Pushkin, C. Perrot, Russian folk tales, N. Leskov, D. Mamin -Sibiryak, K. Chukovsky, etc. This is an interesting book dedicated to the production and furnishing of theatrical stages in Soviet clubs. The publication was compiled by Nikolay… Read More