Review
"For anyone wishing to understand Russia's evolution ... the book you hold in your hand is an essential guide ... [T]he country's most recent history is a reflection of the influence of one man, Vladimir Putin. By skillfully dissecting his various 'identities,' showing how these have been reflected in Russian policies and how they may be inadequate to emerging challenges, Hill and Gaddy illuminate not only the recent past but offer a tantalizing glimpse of what the future may hold." --John McLaughlin, former Deputy Director of U.S. Central Intelligence.
"A meticulous psychological portrait of Vladimir Putin and of the highly personalized state he has molded. How Vladimir Putin sees himself is key to how his system works, but, after twelve years of Putin Power, the nation and the people he leads have changed while Putin himself has not. Can Putin reinvent himself? Hill and Gaddy say Russia's new urban middle class wants more than a 'political performance artist."--Jill Dougherty, former Moscow Bureau Chief, CNN
"In this well-written and genuinely entertaining volume, Hill and Gaddy take us behind the theatrics and the rumors to give us a clear and intriguing view of the man himself. They have looked into Putin's eyes and seen . . . a multiplicity of identities, all of which made him what he is today, and all of which tell us something about the Russia he continues to rule. This book is mandatory reading for the president and his advisers."--Robert Kagan, author of The World America Made
"Since Vladimir Putin's return to the Kremlin, Russia-watchers have revisited the perennial puzzle of 'Who is Mr. Putin?'. Fiona Hill and Clifford Gaddy, scholars at the Brookings Institution, have produced the most illuminating study so far, situating the Russian leader within the dual contexts of Russian history and his own KGB past."--Angela Stent, Georgetown University, in Survival
"With so many one-dimensional portraits of the Russian leader, the new offering by Fiona Hill and Clifford Gaddy is a refreshing change of pace. Mr. Putin: Operative in the Kremlin seeks to move beyond the prevailing stereotypes to provide interested readers with "a portrait of Mr. Putin's mental outlook, his worldview, and the individual aspects or identities that comprise this worldview." -- Nikolas Gvosdev, Naval War College, in The National Interest.
"Brookings Institution senior fellows and veteran Russia watchers Hill and Gaddy ( The Siberian Curse) bring high-level expertise to bear on the enigma of Vladimir Putin in this illuminating study. The authors divide Putin's political identity into six basic personas, including the Statist, the History Man, the Survivalist, the Outsider, the Free Marketer and, perhaps most crucially, the Case Officer. Their analysis of each combines enough historical background and contemporary analysis for a graduate-level seminar along with an accessible writing style that won't deter more casual readers. The History Man, for example, is shown as habitually invoking Russia's hallowed past to justify his obsession with an ever-looming threat of disorder, while the Case Officer uses persuasive, focused techniques of gaining a target's confidence, first learned in the KGB, to "enlist every Russian in the service of the state." Though Hill and Gaddy's prose often bears a think tank report's heavy imprint, the authors' final verdict on the Putin era is astute, warning that unless Putin can adapt and perhaps loosen his grip, this seemingly indispensable man will get the blame when his personalized governance apparatus no longer functions well enough to support his nation's needs." --Publishers Weekly
About the Author
Fiona Hill is director of the Center on the United States and Europe and the Stephen and Barbara Friedman senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. From 2006 to 2009, she served as the national intelligence officer for Russia and Eurasia at the National Intelligence Council. Clifford Gaddy, an economist specializing in Russia, is senior fellow in the Foreign Policy and Global Economy and Development programs at Brookings. Hill and Gaddy are coauthors of The Siberian Curse: How Communist Planners Left Russia Out in the Cold (Brookings, 2003).
