John Russell

The Russo-Chechen conflict has been the bloodiest war in Europe since the Second World War. It continues to drag on, despite the fact that it hits the headlines only when there is some 'terrorist spectacular'. Providing a comprehensive overview of the war and the issues connected with it, the author examines the origins of the conflict historically and traces how both sides were dragged inexorably into war in the early 1990s. The book discusses the two wars (1994-96 and 1999 to date), the intervening truce and shows how a downward spiral of violence has led to a mutually-damaging impasse from which neither side has been able to remove itself. It applies theories of conflict, especially theories of terrorism and counter-terrorism and concludes by proposing some alternative resolutions that might lead to a just and lasting peace in the region.

Nonfiction novels have usually been associated with the "new journalism" writers of the 1960s such as Tom Wolfe, Norman Mailer, and Truman Capote. Yet this form has long commanded a key position in the literary canon, as John Russell now reveals.Russell identifies eleven major works not usually thought of as nonfiction novels, such as Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa and E. E. Cummings's The Enormous Room, to create a new definition of the genre. He shows that journalistic writing is characterized by a reporter's proprietary stance, which undermines reciprocity with subjects, while true nonfiction novels feature greater reciprocity and also employ such techniques as circular narrative and bricolage.Reciprocities in the Nonfiction Novel contributes to ongoing explorations of literary forms and offers wise commentary on how writing about real life can become art.