Larissa Reisner – The Decembrists

The first English translation of Larisa Reisner's writings on the Decembrist uprising, originally penned in 1925 for the centenary of the event, offers a Marxist perspective on Russia’s first revolution against tsarist autocracy. Translated and introduced by Cathy Porter, these essays vividly portray the lives of young poets, officers, and aristocrats involved in the 1825 revolt. Reisner, a heroine of the October Revolution and a leading Soviet journalist, is renowned for her six influential books written from the front lines of war and revolution. Her Decembrist essays, praised by Viktor Shklovsky as her finest work, were deeply researched using newly accessible archives. Porter’s introduction includes a bibliography, dramatis personae, and detailed context. The 128-page book, designed by Ott Kagovere, features portraits of the key figures.