Product Description
History of Kazakhstan,Kazakh Khanate,Kazakhlanguage,KazakhSoviet Socialist Republic,Communist Party ofKazakhstan,Government of Kazakhstan,Politics ofKazakhstan,Geography of Kazakhstan,Economy ofKazakhstan,Foreign relations ofKazakhstan,Kazakhstan,Military of Kazakhstan,Religion inKazakhstan,Education in Kazakhstan,Kazakhcuisine,Music ofKazakhstan,Sport in Kazakhstan,Energy policy ofKazakhstan,Elections in Kazakhstan ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Best of the three books available for young people on Kazakhstan
I am blessed to be the great-aunt of two boys adopted from Kazakhstan nearly eight years ago. The boys are now in 2nd and 3rd grade and our family encourages interest in their country of birth, so I have purchased this book along with others listed below to have in our "family" library.

A similar book was expensive, even used, $22 + $4 S/H: "Kazahstan In Pictures", ISBN 0-8225-6588-9.Other than the website, which anyone can access for free:www.vgsbooks.com, "Kazahstan In Pictures" is not nearly as good, nor does it have as many pictures as "Kazakhstan" by Cheng, Pang Guek, published 2001, used price + S/H, $5.45.

A third book with nearly identical information is:"Kazakhstan", by Zoran Pavlovic, 2003, ISBN 0-7910-7231-2.All three books offer almost identical information/pictures.The Cheng book is the best of the three.The website of www.vgsbooks.com can be used to supplement for more current information.

Two more books of Kazakh traditional folktales which will be of much more interest to the kids have been ordered (used), but not yet received:
"Stories of the Steppes" Kazakh folktales, by Mary Lou Masey, 1968, Publisher:McKay.(try ABE.com if you cannot find it)
"Tales Told In Tents" (Hardcover, 2005) ISBN-10 : 1845070666.Neither book has been received yet, but reviews indicate they are both very good.

It is difficult to find quality information on Kazakhstan, but hopefully this will help out others!I hope the two boys and their little sister enjoy them as much as I have.

Good for young and old
Our local library purchased this book as a resource after our family adopted from Kazakhstan and requested information about the country.We were so excited to find that this was really a very good book to give solid background information about the country.We traveled a second time to Kazakhstan to adopt another child and checked this book out several times for our 4 year old so that he could have a better idea what he would be seeing when we arrived in Kazakhstan.I read it myself a couple of times and found that I learned a lot of the basics about the country that I had not been able to learn elsewhere.Nice photos, easy to understand and written in such a way as it is not overly simplified so adults don't feel insulted reading it.

Excellent resource for Kazakhstan info
We first checked this out from our local library and had to have a copy of our own.The book was classified as "Junior", but it is an excellent overview for adults also. ... Read more

Product Description
Through comparative analysis of the reactions of Kazakhstan's Germans and Koreans to the emergence of an independent Republic of Kazakhstan, this book enhances understanding of the conflicting dynamics of socio-political integration in post-Soviet space, the role played by "kin-states" in the creation or negation of "return myths", and the significance of small-scale homelands in the process of de- and re-territorializing identity. Preface In recent years there has been a rapid growth in the number of studies exploring the impact of globalization on ethno-national identity construction, much of it tending to emphasize the increasingly transnationalized, homeless, diasporic quality of life in a post-modern world that is undergoing a dramatic process of deterritorialization. Yet as Billig, Edensor and others have convincingly shown, national identity continues to be reinforced in countless banal ways, not only through official policies and formal cultural rituals and ceremonies, but also and perhaps more importantly through informal popular networks and everyday life-paths of the public that shares that identity.A major part of the performative ways in which national identity is re-enacted and reinforced is in the images, representations and material expressions of homeland, which helps to ground and legitimize the idea of nation through a dynamic process of de- and re-territorialization across a multiplicity of geographic scales. More geographically sensitive studies of identity that investigate the discursive and material ways in which place, power, and scale interact in the making, un-making and re-making of cultural communities are beginning to emerge, but there is much work that remains to be done. In the present work, Diener provides a valuable contribution to this geographic research agenda. His focus on identity as a discursive field and a category of practice that is constituted through a sense of place and a process of reterritorialization engages with and makes its own contribution to the leading edge works in the fields of cultural and political geography, political anthropology and ethnosociology.His focus of attention on two of the deported peoples whose members were forcibly resettled in Kazakhstan provides an exceptionally clear lens through which to assess the reterritorializing and rescaling of place and identity among diasporic communities. Diener's conceptual framework goes well beyond Brubaker's notion of a triadic relational nexus between nationalizing state, homeland or 'kin' state and ethnic minority, and examines the localized sense of homeland that exists toward the "areas of compact living" that were set up to give territorial expression to ethnic group identity during the soviet era. Originally created as territories meant to contain and control the movement of deported peoples whose loyalties to the state were viewed as suspect, these territories became places in which ethnic identity was reconstituted, reimagined and reinforced. Even today, when few Koreans live in their "areas of compact living," Diener's study finds that there remains a general sense of homeland toward these places, a feeling that Korean identity is secure so long as these places exist.On the other hand, German emigration and the in-migration of ethnic others into the German areas of compact living have fundamentally disrupted the local scale at which German identity was reterritorialized. This is the first detailed study of these localized ethnic raions and the role they have played in the rescaling and reterritorialization of diasporic identity in post-soviet space. They also raise serious questions about the idea of diasporas as deterritorialized or 'placeless' communities. Beyond this contribution, Diener's focus on two diasporic communities-the Koreans and Germans - whose circumstances of arrival in the Russian Empire, experiences of ethnic discrimination and pro-Bolshevik stances, and conditions under which deportation to Kazakhstan were all quite comparable, yet whose relationship to the nationalizing state of Kazakhstan, to their 'kin states' and to their localized homelands in Kazakhstan are very different - provides a well-designed research project that helps uncover the factors contributing to the reterritorialization and rescaling of diasporic identity.In particular, this study provides a very clear if multidimensional explanation for why Germans have been much more likely to emigrate than Koreans, and why even the Germans who remain behind are much more likely in surveys to express a desire to leave. This variability in propensity to emigrate is reflective of the degree to which a civic sense of place and identity toward Kazakhstan - a Kazakhstani identity - has developed, and Diener's study provides a very solid discussion of the historical, place-based, socioeconomic and political factors contributing to this differentiation. This study also provides a thorough examination of the meaning of Kazakhstani civic identity in the context of a nationalizing state, both as hegemonic discourse and as part of an interactive renegotiation of public discourses that allow for the remaking of ethno-national identities situated within a patriotic state-scale discursive field.Finally, this study relies on more than secondary source materials and content analysis of official documents, speeches and laws, in that Diener has tested his ideas about the reterritorialization and rescaling of diasporic identities through the use of his own surveys and in-depth interviews among Koreans and Germans in Kazakhstan. This enriches the study enormously, and provides the reader with a much more nuanced understanding of the interactive ways in which identity and sense of place are reterritorialized and rescaled in the contemporary Former Soviet Union. Robert J. Kaiser University of Wisconsin-Madison ... Read more

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Product Description
Kazakhstan’s oil and gas reserves are among the largest in the world. At the outset of independence 10 years ago, Kazakhstan’s leaders promised that the country’s rich natural resources would soon bring economic prosperity, and it appeared that democracy was beginning to take hold in this newly independent state.

A decade later, economic reform is mired in widespread corruption. A regime that flirted with democracy is now laying the foundation for family-based, authoritarian rule. The first thorough examination of the development of this ethnically diverse and strategically vital nation, Kazakhstan: Unfulfilled Promise is a valuable resource for policymakers, scholars, and students concerned with the process of transition from communism to independent statehood in the former Soviet Union. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

All Lies
A big pile of lies that Ms. Olcott put together is nothing but a political order intended to badmouth and misrepresent this country. I was infuriated by this book, I lived in Kazakhstan for 20 years and nothing in this book is close to being true.

Not easy to read but so definitely worth it
If you no background whatsoever on Kazakhstan then it might be a bit difficult to follow all the events.Having said that, Martha Olcott is by far one of the biggest experts on Kazakhstan and if you want to see the opinion of the best then you should give this book a shot.

lacks a lot of supporting information, no comparisons ...
except for Nigeria.
For an "analytical work" the book has a few noticable biases and faults :
1. The book asserts certain claims that are either unreasonable or completely out of hand with the reality. For example, in 1991 Alash Party attempted to assasinate!!! Mr. Derbesaliev, who now became head of Kazakh moslems. FYI: Alash party existed in 1917-1918 and fought for independence from Russian Empire and later Communist Russia, however, the leaders of the party were murdered later by bolsheviks. Alash party was revived very recently (with a different agenda) as part of opposition in Kazakhstan. I am not going to touch on opposition here, because the book doesn't directly address the existence of opposition in Kazakhstan (both constructive and ultra-right/left).
2. Ms. Olcott is surprised at the fact there were no uprisings in Kazakhstan during the period of economic and political turmoil in early/mid 90's (actually, there have been none until this very day). I suppose that would in itself tell something about stability in the country. I understand that for her (or perhaps funds that sponsored her) it would have been better if there was an uprising and as a result the country would see "friendly" forces of NATO coming into the country to take care of the rich natural reserves of oil/metals/uranium/you name it, but at the same time install "democracy". I think people do remember the experience of the US in making democracies in post-WWII world; the list of Latin American and Asian countries would be a little overwhelming to be included.
3. Ms. Olcott claims that lately the difference between rich and poor grew immensely (notice, that under communism Gini index is supposed to be as low as possible). Isn't it a natural process to be observed in a country trying to go from communist society to capitalist society? Notice, Gini index in Kazakhstan is 35.4, in the US Gini index is 40.8 (data from CIA World Fact Book). Hence, the spread of incomes between rich and poor is smaller in Kazakhstan than in the US. Would that mean by Ms. Olcott's logic that the US has more issues with the layers of the society than Kazakhstan?
4. Ms. Olcott notices existence of Kazakh nationalism in the fact that Kazakhstan encourages Kazakhs to immigrate into the country. When any EU country gives a right for permanent residence/naturalization to foreign citizens based on the right of birth/ethnicity it is considered normal (of course, Ms. Olcott doesn't mention this in her book). However, Kazakhstan approved the same rights for Kazakhs living abroad, so for Ms. Olcott it is an epitome of Kazakh nationalism and attempts of Kazakh "dictator" Mr. Nazarbayev to make the country mononational.
5. The usual rule that the language of titular nation is always the state language elicits fury from Ms. Olcott when such regulations happen in Kazakhstan.
6. Ms. Olcott essentially equates the terrorism and Islam. For her, the fact that there are more Kazakhs these days who claim to be moslems is worrying and may signal the coming of terrorism. Basically, if the Americans go to church every weekend it is freedom of choice, but if Kazakh goes to a mosque that is a reason to worry. Of course she fails to mention that Kazakhstan doesn't prohibit different mainstream religions. While travelling through Kazakhstan, one can see a lot of Christian Orthodox churches, as well as a few Catholic churches and synagogues, which in Kazakhstan is certainly considered to be perfectly normal.
It seems that this book is biased in presenting the situation in Kazakhstan. I wonder who are the sponsors of this book (sounds like some oil companies could be)...

deep, heavy book but makes Kaz more understandable
We are adopting a baby from Kaz and wanted a little background on the country. This is not a light read by any means. It gives you a lot of info on the current Kaz president (and his corrupt ways), oil reserves and who's competing for them, ethnic struggles between the Russians and Kakahs, and the apathetic ways of the Kaz voters to name a few of the many topics it addresses. Get it for good background on a variety of important topics vital to Kaz's future success. ... Read more

Product Description

Kazakhstan is emerging as the most dynamic economic and political actor in Central Asia. It is the second largest country of the former Soviet Union, after the Russian Federation, and has rich natural resources, particularly oil, which is being exploited through massive US investment. Kazakhstan has an impressive record of economic growth under the leadership of President Nursultan Nazarbaev, and has ambitions to project itself as a modern, wealthy civic state, with a developed market economy. At the same time, Kazakhstan is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the region, with very substantial non-Kazakh and non-Muslim minorities. Its political regime has used elements of political clientelism and neo-traditional practices to bolster its rule. Drawing from extensive ethnographic research, interviews, and archival materials this book traces the development of national identity and statehood in Kazakhstan, focusing in particular on the attempts to build a national state. It argues that Russification and Sovietization were not simply 'top-down' processes, that they provide considerable scope for local initiatives, and that Soviet ethnically-based affirmative action policies have had a lasting impact on ethnic élite formation and the rise of a distinct brand of national consciousness.

Customer Reviews (1)

Good review of post-Soviet nation-building
This is a good solid book on the connections between Soviet formation of citizens and ethnic groups in Central Asia, and the way in which local Soviet elites have transformed themselves into post-Soviet national leaders. Dave argues that the Kazakh state is modeled on earlier Soviet ideas of a nation, a citizen, and a national or ethnic culture, and that this model provides a means for elites to use Kazakh ethnicity and language as continuing means of power. Very academic, but a good exploration of these ideas in the context of post-independence Kazakhstan.

... Read more

Product Description
This book is a collection of selected personal Emails among Sally, me, and ourfamily at home in the United States.The content of the Emails consists entirelyof our personal observations and experiences: daily living, all-day helicoptertrips over an Asian mountain range, seeing huge lakes, steppes, and desert,opera, and ballet. We've also included much of my work experiences, and anunforgettable 6-day trip on the historic Silk Road of Central Asia to theancient homeland of Tamerlane in Samarkand, and Bukhara in centralUzbekistan.In short, it's a kind of log of our three-month stay living inKazakhstan, a far cry from a typical tourist two-week visit.

Customer Reviews (2)

Golden senior adventures - try it yourself!
What a charming little book!This couple took time out of retirement to jump out of their comfortable suburban lives and head to Kazakhstan to offer volunteer assistance to budding small businesses.The tales of their adventures are touching, funny, and heartwarming.It's a sort of study abroad for the golden years model - more seniors should try it!A wonderful read and an inspiring story!

not worth it if you have to actually buy it...
We're adopting a baby from Kaz and wanted some background on the country. Not a lot of books out there, as you well know! This is a series of e-mails from a retired couple who spent 3 months in the early 90's in Almaty, the husband helping Kaz companies with business plans. It's kind of cool to hear about their trips to the green market and trips to Uzbekistan, but the stuff their relatives write back to them is worthless for Kaz learning purposes. I skipped over a lot. Get it used or from a library if you want to try it or skip all together... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Not as good as a similar book: "Kazakhstan" by Cheng
I am blessed to be the great-aunt of two boys adopted from Kazakhstan nearly eight years ago. The boys are now in 2nd and 3rd grade and our family encourages interest in their country of birth, so I have purchased this book along with others listed below to have in our "family" library.


This book: "Kazakhstan", by Zoran Pavlovic, 2003, ISBN 0-7910-7231-2 is nearly identical to two others.The Cheng book:ISBN 0-7614-1193-3 is the best of the three, as well as the cheapest."Kazakhstan In Pictures", ISBN 0-8225-6588-9, a third nearly identical book was the most expensive and has a link to [...] (which anyone can use for free) This free link can be used to supplement for more current information.

Two more books of Kazakh traditional folktales which will be of much more interest to the kids have been ordered (used), but not yet received:
"Stories of the Steppes" Kazakh folktales, by Mary Lou Masey, 1968, Publisher:McKay.(try [...] if you cannot find it)
"Tales Told In Tents" (Hardcover, 2005) ISBN-10 : 1845070666.Neither book has been received yet, but reviews indicate they are both very good.

It is difficult to find quality information on Kazakhstan, but hopefully this will help out others!I hope the two boys and their little sister enjoy them as much as I have.

good intro to Kaz
I am a middle school librarian AND a soon-to-be adoptive mother of a Kaz baby. I happened to have this book in my middle school library and found it good basic info on Kaz. It covers history, people, food, traditions; all the basics. It's fairly up-to-date too which is nice. The author must be Kaz as he (she?) talks about Kaz in glowing terms that don't always seem warrented (I remember something like --Kazakhstan has some of the most beautiful landscape in the world-- which clearly contradicts other information about the steppes.) That said, a good intro to Kaz, especially for the younger reader. ... Read more

Product Description
Completely updated and revised for this new edition, our unique electronic book on two CD-ROMs has an amazing collection of the finest federal documents and resources about Kazakhstan, providing encyclopedic coverage of all aspects of the country. This disc set provides a truly fantastic reference source, with over one hundred thousand pages reproduced in Adobe Acrobat format! There is complete coverage of newsworthy material about Kazakhstan, including extensive USAID coverage, with over 23,000 pages of reports, doing business, Cheney visit, trade, nuclear nonproliferation, Baikonur cosmodrome, diplomatic list, agriculture, petroleum resources, and more.This incredible and comprehensive series on the countries of the world contains material from the State Department, Department of Defense, White House, and cabinet agencies including Agriculture, Energy, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.There is complete information about geography, people, government, the economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues.In addition to the nation-specific material, as a bonus we have included reports about every country on the globe, with 271 nations, dependent areas, and other entities identified by the Central Intelligence Agency. The CIA World Factbook is considered an invaluable "world encyclopedia" reference book.This incredible two CD-ROM set is packed with over 100,000 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software - allowing direct viewing on Windows and Macintosh systems. The Acrobat cataloging technology adds enormous value and uncommon functionality to this impressive collection of government documents and material. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Good, basic overview of Kazakhstan with added bonus:on-line web links for up-to-date info on country
I am blessed to be the great-aunt of two boys adopted from Kazakhstan nearly eight years ago. The boys are now in 2nd and 3rd grade and our family encourages interest in their country of birth, so I have purchased this book along with others listed below to have in our "family" library.

This book was expensive, even used, $22 + $4 S/H.Other than the website, which anyone can access for free:www.vgsbooks.com, this book is not nearly as good, nor does it have as many pictures as ISBN 0-7614-1193-3 "Kazakhstan" by Cheng, Pang Guek, published 2001, used price + S/H, $5.45.

A third book with nearly identical information is:"Kazakhstan", by Zoran Pavlovic, 2003, ISBN 0-7910-7231-2.All three books offer almost identical information/pictures.The Cheng book is the best of the three.The website of www.vgsbooks.com can be used to supplement for more current information.

Two more books of Kazakh traditional folktales which will be of much more interest to the kids have been ordered (used), but not yet received:
"Stories of the Steppes" Kazakh folktales, by Mary Lou Masey, 1968, Publisher:McKay.(try ABE.com if you cannot find it)
"Tales Told In Tents" (Hardcover, 2005) ISBN-10 : 1845070666.Neither book has been received yet, but reviews indicate they are both very good.

It is difficult to find quality information on Kazakhstan, but hopefully this will help out others!I hope the two boys and their little sister enjoy them as much as I have.

Great summary book
Provides nice color pictures and general summary of the areas of interest in Kazakhstan.Great coffee-table type book -- not too involved with details, just an overview of the country.

Kazakstan review
Our family is adopting a baby from kazakstan, and this book was purchased for my 9 year old son, and for our family to learn about the country. It's a great book, we learned a lot, and my 9 year old really loved it and brought it to school and shared with his friends. We had never even heard of Kazakstan, now I feel we are becoming experts. :) This will be a great book to teach our child about the country he/she came from. Its easy to read and very informative. ... Read more

Product Description
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, nationality groups have claimed sovereignty in the new republics bearing their names. With the ascendance of these titular nationality groups, Russian speakers living in the post-Soviet republics face a radical crisis of identity. That crisis is at the heart of David D. Laitin's keenly awaited book.

Laitin portrays these Russian speakers as a "beached diaspora" since the populations did not cross international borders; the borders themselves receded. He asks what will become of these populations. Will they learn the languages of the republics in which they live and prepare their children for assimilation? Will they return to a homeland many have never seen? Or will they become loyal citizens of the new republics while maintaining a Russian identity? Through questions such as these and on the basis of ethnographic field research, discourse analysis, and mass surveys, Laitin analyzes trends in four post-Soviet republics: Estonia, Latvia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine.

Laitin concludes that the "Russian-speaking population" is a new category of identity in the post-Soviet world. This conglomerate identity of those who share a language is analogous, Laitin suggests, to such designations as "Palestinian" in the Middle East and "Hispanic" in the United States. The development of this new identity has implications both for the success of the national projects in these states and for interethnic peace. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Well written and extremely interesting
This is a carefully researched, thoughtful and well-written examination ofthe Russian speaking population in the "near abroad" since thebreak up of the Soviet Union.While my experience is largely withLithuania, his discussion of the Russian speaking population in Estonia andLatvia seemed insightful. As a minor criticism, or perhaps more as a termof reference for readers, I should note that Laitin seemed more sympatheticto the diaspora Russians than to the local populations.His discussion ofBaltic events struck me as distinctly pro-ethnic Russian, although notoutrageously so.Persons with Baltic ties may disagree with some hisviews, but they will still find them interesting. ... Read more

Product Description
In the 1990s, the former Soviet states of Central Asia experienced dramatic, revolutionary changes. Liberal economic reforms have affected every aspect of daily life, a new local elite of Mafia has rapidly taken power, and corruption and violence are now a fact of daily life.

Focusing on Kazakhstan, A Global Brothel examines the impact of the new capitalism on the everyday lives of the people of Central Asia. The author draws on extensive interviews as well as social and political analyses to explain the extent to which people have been dispossessed. The author assesses the strategies people have used to overcome poverty and insecurity: the new hallmarks of life for nearly everybody; and illustrates well the complex and human responses to the post-Soviet chaos. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

First Rate Ethnography
Post-Soviet Chaos lays out with remarkable clarity the impact of the collapse of the Soviet Union on ordinary people in Kasakhstan.It is not a pretty picture.The only 'market opportunities' which seem to have expanded are for women to become prostitutes or mistresses, or, perhaps, work the 'suitcase' trade, hauling goods pretty much by hand from neighboring territories to resell. Hooliganism is on the rise. Cultural opportunities once enjoyed by all have disintegrated. Kasakh men promote patriotic pride, but mostly to lay claim to women who are gravitating to foreign men with money.Nazpary sensitively lays out the national tensions that have emerged--there are the Kasakhs, divided into three segmented groups.There are the people of the former Soviet lands.And there are the wealthy foreigners (not from Soviet lands, but from the West, or maybe China), regarded as most exploitative.One of Nazpary's most interesting points is that, while Kasakhstan is a Muslim country, there is strong nostalgia for the Soviet Union, at least in terms of the collective rights it guaranteed.He finds little evidence of a drift towards a pan-Islamic identity, notwithstanding the presumption of many Western commentators.Strongly recommended reading.

Shocking picture of counter-revolution's effects
Nazpary's remarkable book surveys the appalling effects of a real counter-revolution. Since 1990, Kazakh workers' rights to jobs, wages, welfare, free education, pensions and savings, have all been ripped away. Their access to cheap housing, electricity, gas, phones, transport, health care, childcare, sport, arts, libraries, have all gone. In the 1980s and 1990s, active NATO and IMF interventions enforced capitalism in Kazakhstan, grabbing oil, gas and metals for firms like Shell and British Gas. 15% of foreign investment is British, 23% South Korean, 29% US. Theft of public property through privatisation has closed factories and destroyed jobs: engineering and agricultural outputs both halved between 1995 and 1998.

This is what happens when the working class lets go of its controls over society, its party and trade unions.

As a young Kazakh woman said, "Before, in the Soviet time, there were moral limits and the authorities looked after them. There were high moral standards ... People were truthful. They were brought up in a good way. But today people have become like savage animals. They behave according to the law of the jungle."

Now violent and corrupt mafiosi, newly freed, traffic in drugs and sex, and become the new rich, while for the workers, there is only loss, insecurity, growing ethnic and gender tensions and huge growths in poverty and migration. Capital goes global; workers are ghettoised. The workers rightly see all these evils as resulting from the infliction of capitalism. Nazpary notes the very strong `Soviet patriotism' among the mass of the people, while the new rich view the Soviet era only as tyranny. He details the networking of family and friends in the scrabble for scarce goods, but as he notes, "tragically and paradoxically, networking as a response to the chaos perpetuates it."

In the FSU as whole, an estimated 4.7 million more people have died since 1990 as a direct result of the counter-revolution. As world capitalism, unrestrained by the USSR's existence, grows more brutal and corrupt, Kazakhstan is just one instance of problems common to workers across the world.

Kazakhstan's workers need to make a new revolution. ... Read more