David Satter
Vlad the Enforcer
The Strongman: Vladimir Putin and the Struggle for Russia
By Angus Roxburgh
I B Tauris 338pp £20 order from our bookshop
The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin
By Masha Gessen
Granta Books 314pp £20 order from our bookshop
Although he has ruled Russia for twelve years, Vladimir Putin remains a mystery. His family life is hidden, as is much of his life story. His wealth is the subject of speculation, with some insisting he is the richest man in Europe. But evidence is difficult to come by. His enemies regularly turn up dead and he attaches little value to human life. Yet he has presided over the sharpest rise in Russian living standards in the last 100 years.
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