From the image of a nun drawing water near the Pontetayevsky Convent in 1904 to a shot of Russians joyfully swilling vodka in the post-Communist era, this photohistory offers an excellent overview of Russia's tragic history in the 20th century. The photographs were culled from numerous Russian archives, most previously sealed, and the result is a fresh and startling view of an embattled nation. The image of women harnessed to a barge in Tsarist Russia contrasts painfully with the group portrait of elegant young ladies at the Smolny Institute in St. Petersburg; other images move from the Communist takeover through the horrors of collectivization, World War II, and the Gulag to the achievements of the postwar years and the collapse of communism. The text is as good as the photos, which isn't often true in photo spreads like this; British journalist Moynahan neatly condenses Russia's history while retaining a flair for the telling anecdote.