To the Edge of the World

June 2, 2014
Icy, bleak, but unusually dramatic is this portrait of earth’s longest railroad and its prominent role in Russia’s development. The building of the 5,750-mile steel ribbon between Moscow and Vladivostok was the usual railroad epic on the vastest scale, with brilliant engineering, creative financing, and an army of laborers and convicts toiling away at perilous tasks in extreme terrain. But unusually for a railroad, the Trans-Siberian followed its prodigious beginnings with second and third acts instead of just settling down to convey boxcars and sleepers. As the vital transport corridor for Russia’s expanding quasi-colony in Manchuria, it was a primary cause of the Russo-Japanese war in the early 20th century, Wolmar (The Great Railroad Revolution) argues; it erupted again during the Russian civil war as a major, if oddly one-dimensional, military theater, fought over by Czech freebooters, bloodthirsty Cossack chieftains, and Trotsky himself chugging back and forth in his armored train. Wolmar tells this story with aplomb, sprinkling his lucid prose with piquant sketches of personalities, vivid travelogue, and interesting socioeconomic background on the railroad’s success in bringing settlers and industry to the Siberian expanse. There are gripping narratives to be told about transport infrastructure, and surely this is one. Photos.

June 15, 2014

Before the first railroad tracks were laid, travel in Russia was a long, difficult, and treacherous undertaking, especially travel to the eastern seaboard, which could take up to a year to reach from Moscow. In his latest book, Wolmar (The Great Railway Revolution), a journalist and transportation historian, relates the history and politics behind the building of the Trans-Siberian Railroad, beginning in 1891. The system was 5,750 miles long when completed, and it altered the landscape of eastern Russia, travel became much less daunting, and the culture of the region changed as immigration from the West was easier. Primarily undertaken to benefit defense of the land, the project took a decade to finish, an impressive feat for a nonindustrialized country. The building of the railway led directly to the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05) and played a pivotal role in the Russian Revolution (1917) and the resistance of the Nazi invasion. The volume is a breezy read, and while Wolmar does not dive too deeply into the subject, he performs an excellent job of explaining the difficulties of building a railroad through the unforgiving terrain of Siberia and the far-ranging impact the railroad has had on Russian society. VERDICT Recommended for anyone interested in railroad and transportation history and the history of Russia.--Jason Martin, Stetson Univ. Lib., DeLand, FL

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2014
The Trans-Siberian Railroad stretches 6,000 miles from Moscow to Vladivostok on the Pacific coast. Constructed in several phases between 1901 and 1916, it was initially a single-track line that was a tenuous connection binding European Russia to vast reaches of Siberia. Wolmar is a writer and broadcaster specializing in transportation and railroads. Here he has combined the genres of historical saga and travelogue to provide a sweeping and enjoyable account of the construction, historical importance, and current status of the railroad. Wolmar points out the sheer scale of engineering enterprise in building across the hostile Siberian landscape. Much like the building of our transcontinental railroad, the completion opened up areas of Siberia for settlement. The line played important military roles in various conflicts. Trotsky used the line to constantly move the Red Army quickly to confront the Whites during the Revolution. When Stalin moved entire industries eastward to escape the Nazis, the railroad was essential. Wolmar's own experience on the line indicates a surprisingly efficient and comfortable mode of travel. This is a well-done tribute to what remains an important travel artery.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)