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Expert in Russian culture and literature Professor Catriona Kelly uses oral history, personal observation, literary and artistic texts, and archive materials to paint a picture of a fragile, gritty and vital St Petersburg. Kelly, who lives in Oxford and St Petersburg, explains how a creative engagement with the past has always been a fundamental part of life for the residents of this great city. She explains the feelings of anxiety and pride present both in socialist Leningrad and in today’s St Petersburg. And she paints a picture of the city that encompasses its glamorous centre and promenades, and its rubbish dumps and grimy suburbs.

Kelly is professor of Russian at the University of Oxford and author of many books about Russian literature and culture including Children’s World: Growing Up in Russia 1890-1991.