“Once Upon a Time in Russia” by Ben Mezrich – Riding the Perestroika Waves

When the era of communism dawned to a close in the Soviet Union, with the country becoming Russia in 1991, a very turbulent and violent period began during which the country faced a “Wild West”-type scenario, or at least as much as modern civilization permits such a thing to happen.

The perestroika led to countless revolts and a change of regime, but most importantly, it left a huge chunk of power hanging in the air for anyone to claim as their own.

Stability was lost, and with it was born the opportunity to get to the top of the world. Berezovsky and Abramovich were two of the most notable and dangerous individuals to have surfed the waves of the perestroika to personal success, leaving behind a trail of bodies and corruption.

In his book Once Upon a Time in Russia, Ben Mezrich takes it upon himself to give Western audiences insight into the lives of those two men, and consequently, how Russia functioned in the early 90s.

Though the book is unquestionably based on facts and research, it is written in the form of a novel, complete with an intriguing narration that almost makes you forget the reality of it all.

Mezrich begins at the start, chronicling Berezovsky and Abramovich's lives starting from their youths, when the former was a mathematician running a car resale business while the latter remained his close protege. Mezrich details the path they took from there on out, which eventually led the two men to developing a multi-billion dollar empire of oil and aluminum.

We get to see the many things they've drowned out of the public's attention, the trail of important corpses they left behind to make their ascent, and how they managed to brilliantly take advantage of a chaotic and confusing time for the country.

We get to learn in great detail about the partnership between the two men, up until the point they hit some turbulence with Berezovsky being forced into exile after attacking Putin in the media.

Needless to say Mezrich delivers as complete a story as possible, explaining how Abramovich continued to thrive in Russia and going all the way to the world-famous case of Berezovsky's associate being found murdered via Polonium poisoning in London, with the man himself allegedly committing suicide later.

If there is one thing Mezrich ought to be praised for with this book it's the way in which he managed to take a real-life world story, happening in a distant part of the world with different customs, and translate it into a story everyone can understand and enjoy. He takes great care in explaining the context and the setting, making the reader understand what it really meant to live in Russia after the perestroika.

With that being said, he certainly doesn't get bogged down in insignificant details in favour of keeping the action going and unravelling the plot. He gives us a good deal of insight into the book's protagonists  and does his best to explain their thoughts and motivations.

All in all, Once Upon a Time in Russia is a bit of a niche book, explaining and portraying an eventful period in modern Russian history, making a truly intense story out of the incredible lives led by two then-ordinary people.

Those out there who are into studying Russia or enjoy stories about business-like criminals rising to the very top will most certainly enjoy this book.

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Ben Mezrich Personal site Ben Mezrich is an American author from New Jersey who graduated from Harvard University in 1991 with a degree in social studies. Holden Scott is a pseudonym he sometimes uses, and his best-known work is the non-fiction book Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions.