St PetersburgFeaturing a vivid selection from biographies, novels, letters, poems, diaries and memoirs, this volume traces the story of St Petersburg from earliest times. Through these pieces, readers can observe the city's foundation by Peter the Great on the marshy shores of the Gulf of Finland; see how literature and the other arts flowered during the nineteenth century; and observe the often violent turning points of its later history. First hand accounts tell

So far two vaults have been raided

knowledge and wit

As the Third Reich targeted Europe's Jews for deportation and death

“This might be a game

Our words and the thoughts that propel them have tremendous power over our actions

The Leopard is happy to be sandy-yellow and greyish-brown all over

the young bride who watched her brilliant

At the age of thirty-six

or write for the radio or stage

' This highly engaging book centres on the fascinating consequences of the answer being 'yes'

Vermeer's subjects are absolutely typical of the Golden Age yet his vision is supremely distinctive

"This is literally us