Lillis traveled widely across the country, carried out an impressive number of interviews, and followed several key events. She also closely explored the stories and experiences of numerous [people]... Her work demonstrates that [Kazakhstan] has become more secretive, authoritative, and oppressive. CHOICE
Map of Kazakhstan Kazakhstan historical timeline Note on transliteration and names
Introduction
I. The Making of a Potentate 1 Arise, Kazakhstan
2 A Family Affair
3 Don’t Mess With the Boss
4 Fault Lines in the Feel-Good Factor
5 Publish and Be Damned
6 Trials and Tribulations
7 Back to the USSR
8 Stop the Presses
9 Bread and Circuses
10 End of an Era
II. Identity Crisis 11 Kingdom of the Kazakhs
12 Mother Russia
13 Death to the Past
14 The Gulag Archipelago
15 Exile of the Innocents
16 Sparks of Tension
17 December of Discontent
18 Lure of the Land
19 Homeward Bound
20 Behind the Red Wall
III. Stories from the Steppe 21 Keeping the Faith
22 Opium of the People
23 Culture Wars
24 The Curse of Corruption
25 The Shrinking Sea
26 The Wasteland
27 The Ranch
28 The Slumbering Steppe
29 The Collective Farm
Notes Bibliography Acknowledgements Index
Joanna Lillis is a Kazakhstan-based journalist reporting on Central Asia whose work has featured in the Guardian, The Economist and the Independent newspaper.