Travels in Siberia

By: Ian Frazier

Narrated by: Ian Frazier

Length: 20 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

A Dazzling Russian travelogue from the best-selling author of Great Plains.

In Travels in Siberia, Ian Frazier trains his eye for unforgettable detail on Siberia, that vast expanse of Asiatic Russia. He explores many aspects of this storied, often grim region, which takes up one-seventh of the land on earth. He writes about the geography, the resources, the native peoples, the history, the 40-below midwinter afternoons, the bugs.

The book brims with Mongols, half-crazed Orthodox archpriests, fur seekers, ambassadors of the czar bound for Peking, tea caravans, German scientists, American prospectors, intrepid English nurses, and prisoners and exiles of every kind - from Natalie Lopukhin, banished by the czarina for copying her dresses; to the noble Decembrist revolutionaries of the 1820s; to the young men and women of the People’s Will movement whose fondest hope was to blow up the czar; to those who met still-ungraspable suffering and death in the Siberian camps during Soviet times.

More than just a historical travelogue, Travels in Siberia is also an account of Russia since the end of the Soviet Union and a personal reflection on the all-around amazingness of Russia, a country that still somehow manages to be funny.

Siberian travel books have been popular since the 13th century, when monks sent by the pope went east to find the Great Khan and wrote about their journeys. Travels in Siberia will take its place as the 21st century’s indispensable contribution to the genre.

©2010 Ian Frazier (P)2010 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"Ian Frazier caps his travels through Siberia's vastness by narrating his own account of them, another enormous undertaking. The author doesn't have the polish or range of a professional voice actor, but soon we appreciate how this somewhat pedestrian tone suits both the crude reality of Siberia and the deadpan humor that pervades his book. How could anyone doubt that this is the voice of the actual man who, as he admits, had a 'chronic fear of being run over while asleep in my tent' or who was annoyed that his tea tasted like the shaving cream someone had mixed in his cup?" ( Washington Post Book World)

Literary lovechild of John McPhee & Bill Bryson

A gifted narrator, Ian Frazier for me seems to occupy a genetic/literary lovechild space somewhere between Bill Bryson (mother: Midwestern appetites) and John McPhee (father: New Yorker affectations). Like Frazier, I too have been drawn to Russia. I remember traveling to Moscow and St. Petersburg shortly after the wall came down (and before the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis). There is something magnetic (both attractive and repellant) about the people, the culture, the geography, that sucks a certain type/flux of person in.

Both a travelogue and an historical review of Siberia, 'Travels in Siberia' never once disappoints. Frazier hits all the major markers about Siberia: its size, the cold, its history, language, food, the cold, gulags, the cold, transportation, hot women, resources, food, language, hot women, the cold, politics, people, the cold, and hot women. Seriously, the women in Siberia are apparently really hot.

Other things I enjoyed while reading this: 1) All the books referenced by Ian Frazier (check out the selected bibliography. Some books just have a sexy bibliography). There is now a whole slew of Siberian exploration books, Russian novels, and Decembrist history that I want/need to read. 2) Frazier's simple, spare drawings were perfect for this book. 3) The dynamic arc created by this book being written over the last 15+ years. It reminded me of certain Impressionist paintings done at different times of the same exact scene. The colors, light, and shapes shift because of shifts in time and season. The same is true of Frazier's book. You exit the book with a significantly different view of Siberia from which you entered it. That large and desolate country changed in 15 years, certainly, but more than that Frazier changed by both his experiences in and his experiences THRU Siberia.

Now that Pussy Riot* have been released from their own stint in a Siberian penal colony, the book seems like a perfectly timed pre-read for the Olympics. While Sochi is more Caucasus/Black Sea than Siberia, it is still Russia in the way it seems focused on the repressed, totalitarian, corrupting cold. Gays are to stay away. Stray dogs are being round up and shot. Pussy Riot is freed to garner some PR goodwill (yeah, good luck with that Putinbaby). It all seems like some 21st century match-up of Siberian protesters (gays and Pussy Riot) vs the modern Russian Tsar (Putin, obviously). I'm waiting for a whole new set of protesters gearing up for their slow train ride to a Penal Colony. Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.

* I should disclose that I am really attracted to Pussy Riot. Not that "ooh they are solo pretty" attracted way, but in that singular way you (Yes, you faithful reader) are attracted to people with a sharp purpose, excess energy, the ability to capture a moment perfectly, and a willingness to go badasshard against institutions as big and strong as the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian totalitarian state. Pussy Riot did everything the Decembrists did, but they did it in heels and backwards. Plus they have the name Pussy Riot, which is kinda silly, but still also makes my tongue swell, and eyes dart back and forth (looking for Mom) when I say it out loud.

Thanksgiving Traveling in Siberia

Actually I only read Travels in Siberia, by Ian Frazier, Thanksgiving was in Virginia with my in-laws.

This is one book that is best as an audiobook, as Ian Frazier is more a storyteller than an author, and his reading of his own book greatly adds to its pleasures. Audio also works well for Travels in Siberia due to all the Russian - hearing Frazier's pronunciation (and growing fluency over the 16 years he spent writing the book), greatly adds to the narrative.

There are many reasons to read about Siberia and about Russia. Driving home from Virginia on the Garden State Parkway we passed many LUKOIL gas stations. The first 3 letters of LUKOIL come from three Siberian oil fields, Langepasneftegaz, Urayneftegaz, and Kogalymneftegaz - and the fact that we fill up our minivans at a Russian owned gas station should remind us how important this vast country remains to us. Frazier's interest in Siberia is less about energy, although he does talk about the impact on Siberia and Russia of the growth of the energy sector (Russia is the 2nd largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia, and the world's largest producer of natural gas). Rather, Frazier decides to criss-cross Siberia multiple times (in a van, on trains, and other various forms of transport) for love. Not the love of a woman (his wife seems and family seem inordinately and amazingly patient with his extended Siberian wanderings), but for the love of Russia.

Siberia is fascinating for all sorts of reasons. Mostly, we are fascinated by Siberia by its size (5.1 million square miles - or about three-quarters of all of Russia), remoteness and cold weather. Across the Bering Strait, Russia and the U.S. are only 53 miles apart - a fact that Frazier takes advantage of in his early trips from Nome Alaska to Siberia.

Travels in Siberia will not make you want to replicate Frazier's adventures and spend your next spring break in the Russian North. Siberia, as Frazier describes it, concentrates Russia's tendencies towards dysfunction, corruption, and inefficiency. The end of the Cold War, the rise of the Russian energy industry, and the waning of democracy have only heightened these tendencies. As bizarre and brutal as Siberia can be (Frazier spends time visiting Soviet era Gulags), the Siberian people Frazier meets are (almost) uniformly welcoming, literate, and generous in hosting a traveling American.
Highly recommended if you are curious about Russia, Siberia, or just want to escape to another world for 20.5 hours, (the length of the audiobook), with a funny and learned traveling companion.

History and Travel

Ian Frazier's travels through Siberia are discussed, but you get the feeling it is more about the idea of travel than really being involved in the trip. He is thorough in his discussion of the history and description of what people look like and wear, but it doesn't seem that he really gets involved in the trips themselves. I'm all for a challenge in travel, but be better if he was in the moment or if he wrote about the history, but the author doesn't quite meld the two together as well as other travelogs.
It was interesting to hear about the locations and their history, so three stars is the most I could muster.

I loved this book

Where does Travels in Siberia rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

ranks as one of the top 5 books i have listened to.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Travels in Siberia?

I loved the discription of the tundra and the camping at night.

Which character – as performed by Ian Frazier – was your favorite?

I especially liked Sasha. I know there were a lot of Sashas but I think the one that drove and planned the trip was Sasha. I liked his personality and how he actually ended up more like a friend.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No I listened over a period of 2 weeks on my way to work and home.

Worth a listen

While I enjoyed the book overall, there were a few areas I think could have been better. The book is way too long. The actual trip across Siberia didn't happen until about one-third of the way through the book. The first third being taken up by a not-always-too relevant or interesting recitation of the author's activities leading up to the trip. One thing that really annoyed me after a while was the author's tendency to drop in a large, obscure (often cumbersome) word when a simpler, more direct word would better fit the narrative -- again, my opinion. (I like to think my vocabulary is pretty good, but he used a few words -- yes, in English -- that I've never heard of! Humbling!) And last, the author has never met a prepositional phrase he didn't love. They abound. But all in all, the book is packed with interesting information, and the author's fascination with his subject shines through.

As endless as Siberia itself

Much very interesting detail and stories of the land, people, customs and peculiarities. But too much superfluous material or a droning verbatim recital of a subject's comments. worth reading, but could have used scrupulous edting.

I Loved This Book

Any additional comments?

I don't know if my overwhelming love for this book will transfer to other readers but Ian Frazier's obsession with travel and all things Russian were infectious. I found the story laugh out loud funny with some beloved interludes striking me with the giggles randomly during the day while I sort socks and cook soup long after I finished the book. It was banned as bedtime listening because my laughter kept my husband awake! It may be that the author's stories about the Soviet ethos reminded me of my own trips through Central Asia and Eastern Europe. It brought my travel memories and personal brushes with the quirkiness of the Soviet/ Russian worldview into clearer focus. But, whatever the reason, to me, Ian hit the nail on the head and captured that world perfectly. I can't recommend the book more strongly. It is wonderfully engaging and funny as all get out. Listening to Travel's in Siberia is the next best thing to being right there with Ian Frazier on his next trip to Russia.

Great Listen

This book started slowly, but Frazier's travel experiences were worth the wait. I learned a lot about a place in the world I never paid much attention to. I enjoyed Frazier reading his own book because I could hear his Russian pronunciation. One of my favorite audiobooks and worth a repeated listen.

Enjoyed it

Most people do not have the slightest idea what goes on in modern day Siberia but after traveling along with Ian Frazier you will. An added plus is the author is also the narrator and I am not sure this book would have worked if he wasn't the narrator. This is your typical travel book but Frazier adds pizzaz which made me stick with the book from beginning to end.

Authors should rarely read their books

What did you like best about Travels in Siberia? What did you like least?

The description of the journeys was ok.The reader was poor.

Has Travels in Siberia turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, but I have to pick narrators more carefully.

What didn’t you like about Ian Frazier’s performance?

Too folksy. Compare John Lee or Simon Vance.

Do you think Travels in Siberia needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No. See Werner Herzog's movie instead.

Any additional comments?

A Bit rambling. "Wild" was much better. Blue Highways extraordinary.