Grobman is a gifted story-teller. The Education of a Traitor reads like a collection of short stories, in the tradition of Chekhov or James Joyce's Dubliners. At this basic story-telling level, The Education of a Traitor is an often touching, sometimes humorous, account of a sensitive girl growing up in trying circumstances. But her personal story also has broader historical significance. Grobman did not suffer the horrendous treatment of Soviet-era dissidents and refuseniks: she was not tortured; she did not go to prison. But she did experience the cramped living quarters, the chronic shortages, the endemic antisemitism, and the political repression of Cold War Russia. So, just as James Joyce's Dubliners illustrated the paralysis of a city, The Education of a Traitor illustrates the paralysis of the Soviet empire during its declining years.

I liked the book by Svetlana Grobman The Education of a Trator. I would say that is a great book. While reading it, I clearly remembered what had happened to me in my childhood growing up as a Jewish girl. I also, like Svetlana, grew up in Moscow and felt that anti-Antisemitism almost everywhere. Like her I took a decision to leave the Soviet Union for good. I would also add that it is a very educational book.

Grobman unforgivingly and bravely takes you back in time and allows an up-close and personal view of life behind the Iron Curtain. The Education of a Traitor is a must-read for the abundance of historical significance packed into its pages. Grobman doesn’t tout Jewish sentiment, but rather earnestly opens one's eyes to horrors that resonated well beyond World War II, contrasting with the view the entire West was led to believe. This book shows how the power of a government can keep its citizens ignorant and held hostage, while turning entire nations against each other. This story turned my stomach, made me laugh out loud, and broke my heart, sometimes all in the same chapter. The Education of a Traitor is akin to a Russian Anne Frank, told by a child with the charisma of Calvin and Hobbes. Grobman beautifully captures the childhood psyche in this touching story of family, the uncertainties of youth, and life in a forgotten, cloistered society. Sveta, you are not a traitor – you are a survivor and I want to hug you.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book which is engaging and heartfelt.
I grew up in the United States as a woman of color around the same time as the author grew up in Russia.
So, it was intriguing to examine the prejudice and discrimination that she experience compared to mine.
I look forward to her next book.

I loved Svetlana Grobman's stories about growing up in the Soviet Union and navigating a world of bullies, food lines, institutional racism, and close quarters with near strangers. Even though this subject matter seems potentially devastating, Grobman's light touch and lovely writing bring an effervescence to her recollections. The events of the chapters don't lead directly into each other, but the aggregate effect is one of complete immersion. You can imagine Grobman practicing piano (or avoiding it) in a crowded room, and you feel her acute disappointment at missing out on a box of chocolates. Her life started across the world in a social environment that was seemingly different from mine, but this coming of age tale is universal.

I found out about "Education of a Traitor" when I read a featured blog post by the author. I was intrigued, so I decided to check it out. I'm glad I did, because I found Ms. Grobman's memoir both fun, humorous, and very informative. From her youngest years to about two years before college, we are treated to numerous stories that tell of not only Ms. Grobman's youth and how she was formed into the person she would grow up to be, but also a portrait of what it was like to live in the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War, something I'd sometimes wondered about but never had bothered to find out about until I read this book.
Some of these stories are humorous, others are serious, all are just great and make you want to keep reading till the very end (which I did: I started Sunday and finished this morning, Thursday, on the bus to work. Man, this book went by fast!). Definitely a great book that I would definitely recommend to anyone looking for a fun and informative memoir to read.

I really admire this woman for her courage when she was so young, I never really think about the way children grew up in Russia at this time, we have such an easy life in America. Thanks for a great read.

The Education of a Traitor is account of the early years of a Muscovite baby boomer. It describes a childhood that compares to mine in time, but is dramatically different in almost every other way--no one I knew in suburban Kansas City had to share a kitchen and a bathroom with the neighbors.

I know the author works in Columbia, MO. I hope that she follows this book with a sequel, so that I can learn what it took to emigrate to the US.

(I wonder if the children of the USSR learned to "duck-and-cover"?)

A truthful picture of normal life in Russia at that time. Gloomy as the Moscow weather. Demonstrates the simple truth about defunct economies – they are based ideology. Favoritism more important than performance.

Warm look back at growing up in the Soviet Union post-Stalin period. Written by a true, in my point of view, modern literary talent and with a very Jewish bitter-sweet and often dramatic sense of humour used to overcome the guilt resulted from the incongruent fit with the Soviet model. Thank you Svetlana for this fascinating travel in time and space.

This book amazed me! I'm so glad a friend shared it with me! As a former high school English teacher (in the U.S.), on reading it I immediately thought how I would like to see "Education of a Traitor" placed on required reading lists across the country! Actually, I think students all over the world would find it fascinating and feel a kinship with Svetlana Grobman, as I do. This memoir teaches us about something most of us have never thought about: namely, what was it like being a kid and coming of age in the former Soviet Union? What appeals to me the most about this memoir, though, is how the author, while sharing with us details of her life growing up in that particular time and place, also reminds us of our common experiences as children trying to make sense of the world around us--observing family members, teachers, and all the others that we encounter. Each chapter is a little gem revealing some aspect of the philosopher-child, ever observing not only those around her, but herself as well, and then our being privy to the conclusions she draws. There is so much to appreciate in this book. I highly recommend it!

This is a poignant story of a young girl's survival in post World War 2 Russia. It is beautifully written and had my emotions riding a perpetual rollercoaster. Memoirs are not usually so spell-binding.

GREAT BOOK. HOPE TO SEE A SEQUEL ON THE REMAINDER OF HER LIFE. LOVED THIS BOOK!!

Very, Interesting/ learned much as I live in the United States and my knowledge of Russia is limited

I loved this book. Seeing life in Russia through the eyes of a girl and young woman reminded me, once again, how blessed I have been to have grown up in America. The author lets herself come through in a way that made me wish I could meet her and learn more about the person she has become. Well worth the read!

I am amazed by Svetlana's effortlessness to recall the child in her. While reading her work, I reflected on my own childhood a lot. There are a lot of pureness and sensitivity only a child can have. Adults are less surprised when unjust things happen, but a child will be very upset when the world is cruel and dull. And that's what you will see in Svetlana's book. The author's mind is fresh and young. She is still sensitive to what she went through as a Jewish child in Soviet Union. After years of hardship and major adjustment, she somehow keeps the child inside intact. It is rare.

Svetlana is a good storyteller. It is a substantial memoir with authentic recollection of her childhood in Soviet Union. And the best part is, it reads like a storybook.
The author is humorous. Her humor makes those difficult memories easier to read.
Beside, it is just wonderful to feel the world like a child with the writer.

The author's exquisite detail makes these memories of her childhood and adolescence in the 1960's Soviet Union rich with deep feeling. Sharp images, careful character delineation, and compelling episodes, sprinkled with colorful Russian and Yiddish words and expressions (translated) come together in a bittersweet, but often humorous, memoir. Each incident is vivid and compelling and involves the reader in the harsh realities of life of this time and place. Readers become part of this "traitor's" Cold War Soviet Union past.

This is a well-written and very engaging memoir. It is at various times informative, humorous and touching. There are so many beautiful moments in these pages. I hope to read more by Svetlana in the future!

Local author Svetlana Grobman tells about her childhood in Communist Russia. Day-to-day life is harsh by our standards-- she lives with her parents and grandparents in a two-room apartment, they stand in long lines for food, and because they are Jews are not considered "real" Russians. I enjoyed reading this and comparing her life to my own growing up at the same time in the U.S. Life cycle events and challenges are similar such as family relations, going to school, hopes for the future but the Russian culture, environment, and politics make her life experience so different from my own.