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A review by saareman
The Zhivago Affair: The Kremlin, the Cia, and the Battle Over a Forbidden Book by Petra Couvée, Peter Finn
5.0
The Book That Came In From the Cold
Review of the Vintage paperback edition (April 2015) of the original Pantheon hardcover edition (June 2014)
I enjoyed the fictionalized version of The Zhivago Affair in Lara Prescott's [b:The Secrets We Kept|40700317|The Secrets We Kept|Lara Prescott|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1554225513l/40700317._SY75_.jpg|63302352] (Sept. 2019) earlier this year and wanted to read more of the real-life story. Prescott superimposed her original fictional story of intrigues within the CIA on the actual story of Boris Pasternak and the publication of [b:Doctor Zhivago|130440|Doctor Zhivago|Boris Pasternak|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1385508725l/130440._SY75_.jpg|3288400]. Prescott's achievement is somewhat diminished in hindsight as a considerable amount of her book is simply retelling the story from this 2014 investigative work.
Although The Zhivago Affair trumpets about the release of declassified CIA files, it does seem like the co-authors learned more of the story from retired players who spoke under conditions of anonymity and from the more forthcoming Netherlands' Binnenlandse Veiligheidsdienst (BVD) (National Intelligence and Security Agency) who also participated in the Zhivago publication campaign.
I still found the whole story to be fascinating and the amount of research done by coauthors Peter Finn and Petra Couvée was quite extraordinary.
Review of the Vintage paperback edition (April 2015) of the original Pantheon hardcover edition (June 2014)
I enjoyed the fictionalized version of The Zhivago Affair in Lara Prescott's [b:The Secrets We Kept|40700317|The Secrets We Kept|Lara Prescott|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1554225513l/40700317._SY75_.jpg|63302352] (Sept. 2019) earlier this year and wanted to read more of the real-life story. Prescott superimposed her original fictional story of intrigues within the CIA on the actual story of Boris Pasternak and the publication of [b:Doctor Zhivago|130440|Doctor Zhivago|Boris Pasternak|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1385508725l/130440._SY75_.jpg|3288400]. Prescott's achievement is somewhat diminished in hindsight as a considerable amount of her book is simply retelling the story from this 2014 investigative work.
Although The Zhivago Affair trumpets about the release of declassified CIA files, it does seem like the co-authors learned more of the story from retired players who spoke under conditions of anonymity and from the more forthcoming Netherlands' Binnenlandse Veiligheidsdienst (BVD) (National Intelligence and Security Agency) who also participated in the Zhivago publication campaign.
I still found the whole story to be fascinating and the amount of research done by coauthors Peter Finn and Petra Couvée was quite extraordinary.