Imitations of Life

“Louise McReynolds’s and Joan Neuberger’s fine edited book Imitations of Life reminds us that studies of popular culture can be illuminating and valuable. . . . The essays are uniformly good. . . . [A] fine edited book, one long overdue.” - Janet G. Tucker , Russian Review

"[A] talented and original group of scholars on Russian melodrama . . . . [A] fine job of asking new questions, examining well-known material from new perspectives, and applying a range of methodologies to a genre that benefits from such new analysis. . . . Imitations of Life is an excellent book that should appeal to professional historians and literary scholars, as well as to students enrolled in Russian studies courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level. It offers much to those of us interested in adding a greater sense of texture to our understanding of the Russian cultural and social experience of the last two centuries. McReynolds, Neuberger, and their contributors should be congratulated for the their efforts."

- William Richardson , History: Reviews of New Books

"[An] excellent volume. . . . [T]his volume should be of great interest to students of literature, history, and cultural studies." - Choi Chatterjee , American Historical Review

"Anyone interested in this undervalued dimension of Russian culture would benefit from reading this collection. The book's attention to a variety of genres and works underscores how widespread melodrama was, and should inspire scholars both to take it seriously and to study it further." - Elizabeth Yellen , Slavic and East European Journal

"By studying a variety of melodramatic forms from the last two centuries, the contributors to this volume prove that Russian melodrama has played a significant role in Russian culture, society, and politics. Filling an obvious gap in Russian scholarship, Imitations of Life will be invaluable to historians, literary and cultural specialists, as well as film scholars." - Erika Haber , Symposium

"Readers interested in melodrama in general, as well as those whose area of interest is the art, culture, politics, society or history of Russia in particular will find much of value and interest in this challenging and thought-provoking collection of essays." - Rachel Morely , Slavonic and East European Review

"The authors accomplish a daunting task. . . . [W]ell-written and organized. . . . [T]his is an excellent collection of essays that adds significant and interesting material to the semiotics of Russian culture." - Joanna Kot, Slavic Review

"Unusually for a scholarly collection, the reader gets the impression that all the contributors enjoyed writing their pieces. . . . [A] very tight and well-edited volume." - Richard Taylor, Modern Language Review

“Melodrama bore all the defects and virtues of its parent, the French Revolution. Given to wild flights, neck-breaking twists and turns, stark judgements of good and evil, the genre also brought public attention onto private life and the vicissitudes of underprivilege. Melodrama taught much to the Russians who appropriated it. As the contributors to the present volume demonstrate, it taught them how to see, to understand and even how to accomplish history. An imitator surely, but also a creator of life—we can all be grateful to Neuberger and McReynolds for bringing this to our attention.” - James von Geldern, Macalaster College