The Big Show in Bololand: The American Relief Expedition to Soviet Russia in the Famine of 1921

When a devastating famine descended on Bolshevik Russia in 1921, the United States responded with a massive relief program that included nearly 300 American relief workers who were the first outsiders to witness and record Russia's Bolshevism. This epic tale is here related as an American adventure story, largely derived from the diaries, memoirs, and letters of the diverse and colorful group of American participants.


About the Author
Bert Patenaude is a historian, lecturer, and documentary filmmaker who specializes in Russian affairs. He is presently a lecturer in the History Department at Stanford University and a Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution, and he is the principal writer of "Utopia Revealed," a forthcoming five-part series for PBS on the history of socialism. Patenaude is the editor of several books on Russian studies, including The Russian Revolution and Stalin and Stalinism. His film credits include associate producer of the Emmy Award-winning PBS film "Inside the USSR," the Frontline documentary "A Journey to Russia," and "Stalin's Ghost," an NBC News Special Report. He was educated at Boston College and the University of Vienna, and received his PhD in history from Stanford in 1987.