Russia Starts Here - In Conversation with Howard Amos - 16th November
Join us at Night Owl Books on Monday, 16th November at 8pm, when we'll be joined by author Howard Amos to discuss his book Russia Starts Here: Real Lives in the Ruins of Empire.
Purchase a copy of the book via this page to receive a free ticket to our event - while spaces last!
Howard Amos will be joining us for a Q&A, followed by a book signing.
Select 'local collection' to pick up your copy from Night Owl. Alternatively please select a Royal Mail option, and I'll arrange for a copy to be shipped straight to you.
About Russia Starts Here:
SHORTLISTED FOR THE PUSHKIN HOUSE PRIZE 2025
SHORTLISTED FOR THE SALTIRES DEBUT NON-FICTION PRIZE 2025
SHORTLISTED FOR THE SHERBORNE PRIZE FOR TRAVEL WRITING 2026
Returning to an overlooked region on the edge of Russia, Howard Amos sets out on a quest to understand the country he once called home. On Russia’s European borderlands, people live their lives among the ruins of successive empires. Pskov, an old Slavic land of forgotten stories and faded waysides, has weathered the tides of history.
Once a thriving nexus of trade and cultural exchange, today it is one of the poorest and most rapidly depopulating places of this vast nation. To understand the darkness that has captured Russia, Howard Amos journeys through a landscape of small towns, re-wilding fields and dilapidated churches. This is a lyrical portrait of Russia where it meets NATO and the EU – a place of frontiers and boundaries that reveals unfamiliar and uncomfortable truths.
In a country where history has been erased, manipulated and marginalised, the voices Howard Amos spotlights are a powerful antidote against forgetting. From the last inhabitants of a dying village to the long-term residents of a psychiatric hospital and a museum curator fighting local opposition to chronicle Pskov’s forgotten Jewish heritage, Howard Amos uncovers compelling stories that are shaped by violence, tragedy and loss. He also encounters some of the powerful men who have loomed over Pskov leaving a troubling legacy in their wake, from far-right politicians to Putin's personal priest.
Paperback, 320 pages, published July 2026.
About the author:
Howard Amos is a Russia-focused writer and journalist who has been published by outlets including The Guardian, Foreign Policy, The TLS, and The Associated Press. Raised in London, he spent a year in Russia’s Pskov Region before going on to work for almost a decade as a correspondent in Moscow. His first book, Russia Starts Here, was published by Bloomsbury in 2025 and shortlisted for the Pushkin House Book Prize, Scotland’s National Book Awards, and the Sherborne Travel Writing Prize.
- Where will we be meeting?
The event will be held at Night Owl Books, 1 Bridge Street, East Linton, EH40 3AG.
- Can I pick my copy up on the night?
Please feel free to collect your copy on the night, or in advance if you would like to read it before attending.