The Pearl: A True Tale of Forbidden Love in Catherine the Great's Russia | 
| Author: Douglas Smith
Publisher: Yale University Press
Category: Book
List Price: $35.00
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Avg. Customer Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 45365
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 352
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 6 x 1.3
ISBN: 0300120419
Dewey Decimal Number: 782.1092
EAN: 9780300120417
ASIN: 0300120419
Publication Date: May 27, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Filled with a remarkable cast of characters and set against the backdrop of imperial Russia, this tale of forbidden romance could be the stuff of a great historical novel. But in fact The Pearl tells a true tale, reconstructed in part from archival documents that have lain untouched for centuries. Douglas Smith presents the most complete and accurate account ever written of the illicit love between Count Nicholas Sheremetev (1751-1809), Russia’s richest aristocrat, and Praskovia Kovalyova (1768-1803), his serf and the greatest opera diva of her time. Blessed with a beautiful voice, Praskovia began her training in Nicholas’s operatic company as a young girl. Like all the members of Nicholas’s troupe, Praskovia was one of his own serfs. But unlike the others, she utterly captured her master’s heart. The book reconstructs Praskovia’s stage career as “The Pearl” and the heartbreaking details of her romance with Nicholas—years of torment before their secret marriage, the outrage of the aristocracy when news of the marriage emerged, Praskovia’s death only days after delivering a son, and the unyielding despair that followed Nicholas to the end of his life. Written with grace and style, The Pearl sheds light on the world of the Russian aristocracy, music history, and Russian attitudes toward serfdom. But above all, the book tells a haunting story of love against all odds.
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| Customer Reviews:
 A truly remarkable book -- hard to put down! October 3, 2008
Douglas Smith has written a thoroughly readable, immaculately researched tale detailing the life of the talented opera singer Praskovia (aka "The Pearl")--who was born as a serf, but raised to become one of the serf "intelligentsia" (whose job it was to entertain the aristocrats), rose too become an singing star, and eventually entered into a long-term forbidden relationship with her master, Nicholas Sheremetev, whom she eventually married in secret.
Against the lush backdrop of Tsarist Russia, the story is not just a tale of "forbidden love" (as indicated by the quasi-salacious subtitle of the book) but also a fascinating piece of psycho-social history that details again and again the essential contradictions of a talented and passionate woman living a life trapped within a strict social system that officially relegated her to a position of slavery, with no official hope of ever getting out of that position. The tale is made all the more gripping for the sympathetic portrait it draws of Sheremetev, who bucks social and class convention and pursues his love for Praskovia, in sharp contradiction to the mores of the Russian nobility.
The biggest challenge Smith faced in writing this book was probably the lack of historical data about Praskovia's life. Thus, much of what he describes about, say, her separation from her family and move to the "Big House" is extrapolated from what is generally known about serf upbringing. Luckily, Smith, an internationally known expert in the Russia of Catherine the Great, is up to the task and masterfully manages to fill in details based on his extensive research of the social lives of serfs, without falling into the trap of simply fictionalizing her life.
Overall, Smith is a virtuosic writer, balancing a historian's need for well-researched detail with a novelist's flare for the telling description, the clear narrative thread, and the emblematic moment or detail that reveals a larger psychological or social truth. In particular, the "serf theater" interlude sections are masterfully written. Truly fascinating stuff. I got hooked at the beginning, and with each chapter it became harder to put the book down. Highly recommended!
 Pearl before swine September 9, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
This was a disappointing book. The author seems to have spent years in research and ended up with enough material for a short essay, which he inflated with filler to reach book length. The first major problem was that the author seemed unsuited to write about 18th century aristocrats. His views appear to be petit bourgeois and Victorian in that in every chapter he spends ink in scolding the long dead for living lives of self indulgent pleasure. Whats the point? The social system they lived in is long gone. Why complain about it. In fact, the author could have saved about 60,000 words by simply stating "The rich and powerful in Russia in the time of Catherine II behaved exactly as the rich and powerful everywhere behave in all time periods."
Next, he gives little information on the Pearl. This appears to result from the fact that there is very little information to find. She MAY have met Catherine the Great, she MAY have met Alexander I, etc. The book should have focused on someone there was information on, like Count Sheremetev himself. By trying to focus on The Pearl the book reads like a biography of Napoleon's valet.
The Pearl comes across as a shadow of a shade. She was apparently extremely superstious but not adverse to sleeping with her master to get on in her world. She starred in performances of obscure and justly neglected operas given by a meglomaniac grandee.
The essay on "Serf Theatre" is fascinating and almost makes up for the tedium and maudlin sentimentality of the rest of the work.
A delightful and historically accurate view of Zsarist Russia September 7, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I loved this book! As a student of Russian Literature over thirty ago, this wonderful novel offered me an opportunity to revisit the beautiful and complex history of Zsarist Russia. The story was compelling, and I found myself unable to put it down. The attention to historical detail, which was obviously very well researched, brought the beauty and grandeur of that unique time and nation vividly to life. I learned a great deal about the Russian theatre and it's importance in the evolution of theatre as we know it today. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves history, and a good love story.
Misleading title and cover discription August 1, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
The title and the cover's description lead one to expect a biographical story of the love story between the Pearl, Praskovia Kovalyova (the Count's mistress and later wife) and Count Nicholas Sheremetev which occurred during an exciting time in Russian history, the time of Catherine the Great. However, the author admits there is little information about this love affair and actually spends most of the book describing the Count's theaters, operas, and dazzling homes. The author even spends a few chapters describing things that bear little relationship to the so-called love story. There is very little information, in fact, about the Pearl, after whom the book is title. Quite misleading!
However, well researched the book, the love story is still to be told.
Disappointing book.
Review of The Pearl May 13, 2008
14 out of 15 found this review helpful
Douglas Smith has written a fascinating book. The Pearl tells the tale of Nicholas Sheremetev, Russia's richest noble, who secretly marries Praskovia Ivanovna, his serf and the star of his "serf theater". The book reads like a novel with characters straight out of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, but bears all the signs of great history -- thorough research, good judgment, a sense for the times and characters, and deep insight into the social and political forces at play. This work of dual biography and social history is also a joy to read.
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