Reading Russian Fortunes

This is the first full-length study of the huge popularity and cultural impact of fortune telling in Russia from the eighteenth century to the present. It examines the ways in which popular fortune telling books found acceptance among urban and literate Russians, the role of women in fortune telling, and the function of fortune telling in their culture. It goes on to consider the relationship between urban fortune telling and traditional oral culture, and discusses why fortune telling continues as a powerful force in modern Russian society.