{"product_id":"hard-times-a-novel-of-liberals-and-radicals-in-1860s-russia-9780822964223","title":"Hard Times: A Novel of Liberals and Radicals in 1860s Russia","description":"Vasily Sleptsov was a Russian social activist and writer during the politically charged 1860s, known as the \"era of great reforms,\" and marked by Alexander II's emancipation of the serfs and the relaxation lifting of censorship. Popular in his day, Sleptsov's contemporaries Leo Tolstoy and Anton Chekhov praised his writing:, with Chekhov once remarkeding, \"Sleptsov taught me, better than most, to understand the Russian \u003ci\u003eintelligent\u003c\/i\u003e, and my own self as well.\" \u003cbr\u003e The novella \u003ci\u003eHard Times\u003c\/i\u003e is considered Sleptsov's most important work\u003ci\u003e.\u003c\/i\u003e It focused popular attention on the radical and liberal movements through its fictional setting, where the characters contend with constantly evolving political and social dilemmas. \u003ci\u003eHard Times\u003c\/i\u003e was immediately recognized as a vibrant and compelling depiction of prerevolutionary Russian intellectual society, full of lively debates about the possibilities of liberal reform or radical revolution that questioned the viability of a political system facing massive social problems.\u003cbr\u003e This is the first English-language version of \u003ci\u003eHard Times, \u003c\/i\u003e expertly and fluidly translated by Michael Katz. Highly readable, it provides important historical insights on the political and social climate of a volatile and transformative period in Russia history.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Pittsburgh Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/26\/2016\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780822964223\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 136\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.70lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.50w x 0.70d","brand":"Vasily Sleptsov","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36644850892956,"sku":"9780822964223","price":19.55,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_937d450f-fe61-4fb6-8653-ddac7b48600e.jpg?v=1603859632","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/hard-times-a-novel-of-liberals-and-radicals-in-1860s-russia-9780822964223","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}