Books by Daniel Treisman

The author is Daniel Treisman and the subtitle is Russia's Journey from Gorbachev to Medvedev .  Is this the first non-fiction book to be making my "Best of 2011" list?  Most of all, it argues persuasively that, rather than botching the transition away from communism, the Russians/Soviets did a remarkably good job, relative to what could have been expected.  It's also the best all-round book-length treatment of what the subtitle indicates and it is readable as well.  Excerpt: