10 Russian memoirs and diaries that are enthralling page-turners

This valiant lady who lived in the first half of the 19th century described how while dressed as a man she served in the Russian Army and fought Napoleon's forces. Durova wrote about her life and the demeaning position that women of her era often found themselves in; essentially born "to live and die in slavery." She spoke about her resolute decision to "separate [myself] from the gender which, as I believed, wa