The Zhivago Affair: The Kremlin, the CIA, and the Battle over a Forbidden Book Hardcover – June 17, 2014

During the Cold War, the CIA was engaged in relentless global warfare with the Kremlin. The agency used a host of front organizations and phony foundations, spent many millions of dollars to fund concert tours, art exhibitions, magazines, academic research, student activities and book publishing. All theses were weapons in the covert action against the Soviet Union masterminded by George Kennan, who was the intellectual author behind this. One estimate says that some 10 million books and periodicals were distributed by the CIA in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. "Doctor Zhivago" was one of those books which was printed and distributed clandestinely in the main Russian cities.This book, which is just one episode in the colossal ideological battle between the two superpowers, is excellent and is very original. The authors have put in a tremendous effort in researching its topic, using many untapped archives and interviews. It reads like a fast best-selling political thriller. This is a fascinating account of the propaganda machines the USA used against the Eastern Bloc, showing Pasternak's and his friends' courage and it shows to what extent the battle for the minds of the readers in the East was conducted. It is also a detailed story about the cultural and intellectual background of the thirties to the fifties in the USSR.This battle over the publication of "Doctor Zhivago" was one of the first efforts by the CIA to leverage books as instruments of political warfare. It was Khrushchev himself who admitted in the end that the Russians "caused much harm to the Soviet Union "and added that he was "truly sorry for the way he behaved toward Pasternak".There were additional writers who followed Pasternak's way, among them Solzhenitsyn and Brodsky.This book is highly recommended.

"Books are different from all other propaganda media," wrote the CIA chief of covert action, "primarily because one single book can significantly change the reader's attitude and action to an extent unmatched by the impact of any other single medium...that is, of course, not true of all books at all times and with all readers -- but it is true significantly often enough to make books the most important weapon of strategic (long-range) propaganda."This is the true story of how the CIA used the novel Dr. Zhivago as a weapon in the cold-war fight for the hearts and minds of Russian citizens. In fact, the CIA had a "book program" which smuggled hundreds of titles into eastern bloc countries. So, beyond all the politics, beyond the biography of Boris Pasternak, this book is also a testament to the power of literature.The book is well written, almost reading like a spy novel at times. We see what life was like in Stalinist Russia and how important the Cold War was to the U.S. We see the life of Boris Pasternak, including the open affair he carried on and the pressure placed on him to renounce the Nobel Prize for Literature.

When the celebrated poet Boris Pasternak began the novel Doctor Zhivago in 1945, he and his fellow Russian writers were living under the terrifying, watchful eye of Joseph Stalin. Pasternak had lived through the exhilaration and the disillusionment of the 1917 October Revolution and he wanted to write a piece of fiction that would capture the events surrounding it, even if it meant revealing the historic flaws that continued to infect the repressive government under which he lived. When he finished Doctor Zhivago in 1955 it was (predictably) rejected by the Soviet press so Pasternak smuggled the manuscript into Italy to be translated and published. “It does not matter what might happen to me,” he told his friend, Isaiah Berlin. “My life is finished. The book is my last word to the civilized world.” Doctor Zhivago made its way around the globe at warp speed, coming full circle in 1958 when the CIA ’s Russian-language edition was smuggled back into the Soviet Union for Pasternak’s countrymen to read. Based on newly released documents, Finn and Couvée’s account reads like a spy thriller with a deeply flawed but heroic writer at its center. History, Cold War politics, romance, intrigue…this book-about-a-book packs a punch.

This is a reminder how powerful literature was when there was no internet, and for the most part, to be published, you had to have something to say and the ability to say it well. Add to that the special Russian affection for long and deep books, story that immerse you in the paint the author paints landscapes, scenes and personalities with, and you get a sense of the power of literature for good and illumination of the human condition. The story is told well, and the read is quick.Read this book and read Doctor Zhivago again, And then read "“Words Will Break Cement: The Passion of Pussy Riot" to see how the passion of Russian art, if in a different form. I might be too old to judge its value as art— I cannot listen to any of their songs al the way through or avoid wincing at their performances, but I cannot deny the power of the art or the courage of the artists. In fact , they showed more courage than Pasternak, for they went to jail for the right to express themselves through art— something Pasternak did not face. (In fairness to Pasternak, pressure on him came not form threatening him, but his intimates, with jail. He "only" faced loss of income and status within his country.

When Russian poet Boris Pasternak wrote his only novel, Doctor Zhivago, he knew that its criticism of the Soviet revolution, though mild, would be enough to ensure that the book wouldn't get past the censors. So he decided to give it to an Italian publisher to be translated and published abroad despite knowing that this would be severely frowned upon by the authorities. However the CIA decided it would be a propaganda coup if they could have the book printed in Russian and smuggled back into the USSR. The Zhivago Affair is billed as the story of that CIA campaign and of the impact it had on the Soviet regime and on Pasternak himself.Although the CIA campaign is given plenty of space, most of the book really takes the form of a biography of Pasternak. Already a highly regarded poet when he began writing his novel, Pasternak was also already seen as potentially dangerous to the regime and therefore his work was closely monitored, as was the work of most writers. The Soviet regime pampered its authors and intellectuals in comparison to other sectors of society, but punished any disloyalty harshly, with imprisonment in the gulags or even death on occasion. So from the moment it became known that he was writing the novel, Pasternak ran grave risks of bringing retribution down on himself and the people close to him.I expected to find that I admired Pasternak - that he was a courageous man standing up for his beliefs against a regime that could crush him. Sadly, I came away from the book feeling that in fact he was an arrogant egoist, who cared little for anyone but himself and had no purpose in writing his book other than self-aggrandisement. Well, I can accept that - writers should not have to serve a higher calling any more than the rest of us, but then they shouldn't ask for special treatment either - and oh, how Pasternak felt that his amazing, unmatched genius (as he judged it) deserved to be recognised, honoured and lauded! He also felt that he was so special that he shouldn't be expected to live within commonly accepted standards, so kindly moved his mistress and her family in just down the road from his wife and own family and divided his time happily between them. Happily for him, that is - one felt the wife and mistress weren't quite so thrilled by the arrangement. But I think his level of self-centeredness is best shown by the fact that when he decided the only way out of the pressure over the book was suicide, he expected his mistress to kill herself along with him. To my amusement, the devoted but almost equally self-centred Ivinskaya was having none of it! And, denied his dramatically artistic and romantic exit, Pasternak decided to live on...The CIA operation was dogged with incompetence from the outset (no big surprise there, I'm guessing) and also paid scant attention to the problems it may cause for Pasternak inside the USSR. However, they did in the end manage to smuggle some copies of the book in and, although the readership in the USSR was limited, the book became a huge bestseller internationally. This may have provided a level of protection for Pasternak since any severe action against him would have provoked international condemnation; and by the late '50s and early '60's, the Soviet regime cared a bit more about their international standing than they perhaps had a decade or two earlier. However, they did subject Pasternak to a number of restrictions and humiliations that made his life increasingly difficulty - they forced his peers to publicly condemn him and suspend him from the writers' union, which in turn meant that he couldn't get work. With no income, he was driven to trying to smuggle the royalties from the sale of the book in Europe into the USSR at great risk to himself and those he involved in the plan. And again Pasternak's selfishness and egoism can be seen at play here - too afraid to collect the money himself, he gave the task to the young daughter of his mistress, a task which later resulted in her spending time in prison - something Pasternak always managed to avoid for himself.The book is well written and gives the impression of having been thoroughly researched. Despite my lack of sympathy for Pasternak, I enjoyed the biographical strand more than the CIA story and was glad that Pasternak's story got more space than the spy stuff. In case I've made it seem that the book is very critical of him, I must say that the authors' interpretation of Pasternak was considerably more sympathetic than my own, while not making any attempt to whitewash the less appealing aspects of his personality and behaviour. Overall, the book gave a clear picture of the difficulties faced by writers trying to operate under a regime of censorship backed up by fear, and some of the more moving moments were when the authors recounted the later thoughts of Pasternak's peers, regretting how they had allowed themselves to be manipulated into turning away from him at the height of the affair. An interesting and thought-provoking read - recommended. 4½ stars for me, so rounded up.

Shortly before the first lockdown in the UK, I started studying Russian and took up a new hobby of painting. Although Russia was never a country of my interest, I like studying languages (Russian is my 7th foreign language) and, as some linguists claim, language is culture, and I got interested in Russian history. In addition, some Russian paintings in the 19th Century are very evocative and breathtakingly beautiful, giving a sense of romanticism. Through my introduction to Russian culture and history, I came across the Zhivago Affair.I watched the film Dr Zhivago a number of times. David Lean does produce visually beautiful films and the music is exquisite. It is supposed to be a very romantic story, too, but apart from the aesthetics, I never liked it. I did not know why, but now I know why, having read the Zhivago affair and a bit about the author Boris Pasternak himself through the book.It seems to me that Zhivago is somewhat Pastenak. Frustrated in the Soviet socialism, yearning for the expression of freedom in both life and his art, seemingly attractive but complex personality, attracting female attention are some of the similarities I find between them, and of course they both had an element of arrogant disposition and a double life (2 families).The Zhivago Affair is a different story. It is not only about the sequences of events about the publication of Dr Zhivago. it tells us about the social background, Cold War, Boris Paternak himself, his family and friends, and a bit about after his death. For me, in a way, it was more interesting to read it than Dr Zhivago.In addition to massive library work, it would have been interesting to know whether the authors were able to meet and have interview the Pasternak family members or Irina, a daughter of Boris and Ivanskaya, now living in Paris. The background information is not clarified, yet I presume it is a result of laborious journalistic investigative reportage.The book is a documentary, produced in a non-judgemental manner and extremely effectively. As some of the previous reviews said, it was much much better than some modern mediocre spy story. The flow is good and easy to follow even to me who had only fragmental knowledge about the Soviet history.Russian names are spelled out phonetically in Western alphabet, and it would have added some flavour if the original Russian names in Cyrillic alphabet, which is only a minor point.Having read the Zhivago Affair, I might try Dr Zhivago again, so that I might be able to catch what I previously missed. Thank you for such a good read.

After this book had been serialised on Radio 4, I thought it might be something I would be interested in. Its not a biography of Pasternak but an account of the extreme reaction of the Soviets against the publicaton of his book in the West "Dr Zhivago", even though he had offered it for publication in the Soviet Union. He was convinced of the literary stature and merits of his book that he defied his peers and subsequently suffered the consequences of his actions. The Soviet Union doesn't come out well in this account and at the height of the so called " Cold War", maybe Pasternak should have been more circumspect in his actions. The book is immensely interesting and a very good read.. One learns a lot about Pasternak the person at this time of his life and to my mind I have very little sympathy with him. He was a philanderer by all accounts and had a mistress who suffered terribly on two ocassions by being transported to the Gulag on account of her relationship with Pasternak. I cannot comment on the literary merits of Dr Zhivago having only ever seen the film. However, after reading this book about the trials and tribulations of Pasternak it is on the list of books I might read given time. This Zhivago Affair is an immense read and thoroughly recommended.

If anyone thinks that books are just stories, fictional entertainment, then pass them this book. Finn uncovers the way in which Pasternak's Doctor Zhivago became a weapon to both sides in the Cold War as both Soviet Russia and the US battled to win 'hearts and minds'.With access to previously secret CIA files, there's a slight air of the romp/heist about this - if it weren't for the very serious import and impact 'the Zhivago affair' had on peoples' lives. The account of Americans secretly funding the giveaway of the novel at Expo '58 from the Vatican stand should be comic, but coming as it does amidst the virulent persecution of Pasternak, his associates, his family and other writers, smiles die.A lively account of a specific case, but one which raises all kinds of issues about censorship, artistic freedom and the individual.

I bought this book after watching a TV programme about the CIA's efforts to publish Dr Zhivago. It does now seem quaint (as it says towards the end) that one global power would seek to destabilize its enemy with literature but it may have worked.I should point out that I haven't read Dr Zhivago as I've always found Russian literature to be a bit heavy and poetry is not my bag but the film is one of my favourites.