Review by Choice Review
This collection of essays and discussions concerns the manifold forms and the "immeasurable" and "catastrophic" consequences of the censorship of creativity in the Soviet Union and the resourceful efforts of some to circumvent it by publishing in foreign journals or in nongovernment publications. The book also suggests that the success of the democratic reforms under Gorbachev depends not so much on the relaxation of censorship as on its elimination, although many doubt that the Soviet political system can survive without censorship. The primary purpose of Soviet censorship is to restrict the flow of and access to information; it stems from the "fear of alien values and ideas and the belief that the West is out to subvert the populace ideologically." Although many in this book are pessimistic about the end of censorship (which, in Sinyavksy's view, is central to the Soviet state), others are convinced that Russian cultural traditions will continue to survive any system of censorship, flourish periodically, and ultimately "outlive the Bolsheviks." This book offers unusual insights into the Soviet political system and the struggle for creative autonomy and is highly recommended. -V. D. Barooshian, Wells College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
