A statue of Pushkin outside the Russian Museum, St. Petersburg.

“A man needs the proper atmosphere to read the Russians.” — Richard Brautigan

I’m resurfacing for a month or so after about 10 months of wandering through mid-19^th-century Russia.

Since last March I’ve been immersed in Russian literature and history, reading and studying the development of Pushkin, Lermontov, Gogol, Goncharov and Turgenev, among others, as well as reacquainting myself with history of the period (I studied it as an undergraduate, but that was 35 years ago). The works of Alexander Herzen and assorted critics of the period, combined with some modern overviews and commentaries, have filled out the picture nicely.

The impetus for all this was to prepare for a trip to St. Petersburg and the Baltic last summer, but the literary splendor and ideological ferment of the period have pulled me back into something deeper. The next phrase, for which the last 10 months was preparatory, is to work my way chronologically through the complete works of Dostoevsky — a bucket-list item if ever there was one.

Meanwhile, I’m using my breather to catch up on some contemporary American literature and journalism — fun stuff, and certainly a lot easier going most of the time. Then it’s back to work.