"Better than afternoon on oligarch's yacht"

Boris is "en vacances" just now, but his friend Janet reports that a half day trip to Droitwich recently was "better than afternoon on oligarch's yacht (although she has never been on one). The above picture shows the Lido at Droitwich: bigger and better images can be found @ http://ladyofthewaters.wordpress.com/

Whilst lounging beside the pool, Janet read "The Song of Triumphant Love" by Ivan Turgenev from a short story collection in the Oxford World's Classics series, edited by Richard Freeborn. Described as a "jeu d'esprit" this is an exotic tale of love and occult powers set in renaissance Italy.

The Real Wild East - Osterns & Red Westerns

From a Cossack Wedding by Jozef Brandt

Whilst re-reading Octavio Paz's "Itinerary" recently, it occurred to us that "Trotsky - The Western", in which the hero is pursued and eventually killed in Mexico by the ruthless Stalin Gang, might be the material of a darkly humorous movie. We were then only vaguely aware of the existence of the "Ostern" or "Red Western".

These were films made in the former Soviet Union, often in the real wild east of Russia - note reference to current BBC Radio 4 series - with plots adapted to convey a socialist message. It seems, therefore, that the Western was not only a dominant narrative of the US state, but also of the Soviet.

Setting aside inconvenient historical time lines, we feel that John Wayne could have played the role of Boris Yeltsin rather well in the classic western mould, whilst the Stalin-Trotsky relationship might unfold more along the lines of a Sam Peckinpah film.

What is certainly true is that "The Wild East" provides a setting just as evocative as "The Wild West", with the option of a Mexican location available to both Western and Ostern.

With this in mind, Boris shall be setting some space aside on his shelves for films as well as books. He may even venture into video-making territory - the contemporary Cossack resurgence would make excellent subject matter - should an appropriate opportunity present itself.