Overview

A gripping and important memoir by a Finnish woman who migrated to Stalin's Soviet Russia in the 1930s and escaped in 1941. Under the Sickle and the Sledgehammer was originally published in 1942, as war still raged between Finland and Soviet Union. Its writer was a Finnish woman who emigrated to Russia in the 1930s, convinced the new egalitarian state and workers' paradise would be a better life for her and her young son, hopeful once settled she could send for him. What followed was very different to what was promised: a life in constant fear, under intense government scrutiny, of purges and Great Wraths, good people imprisoned and shot; and state-run propaganda that spun a web of lies around its people. Kirsti / Kaarina eventually escaped, defying the odds when so many of her friends and loved ones did not, and recorded her memories under a pseudonym in what became the second most censored book from Finnish libraries after the war. This is the first English translation of this important memoir. Its original preface states: 'I simply want to provide an honest account of what my friends and I had to live through under the “Stalinist sun”.' AUTHOR: Kirsti Huurre, the author of this memoir, was Anna Hyrske's great grandmother. Anna's career is within the financial industry, currently working as the Principal Responsible Investment Specialist at the Bank of Finland. She has previously written books and articles on investment and finance. 13 b/w illustrations, 2 maps

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9781803996691

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Reviews

'Warm, disturbing and compulsive reading, this extraordinary book tells of lives entangled with love, hope and black despair ... Anyone who reads this fascinating story of life in Stalinist Russia will find it etched in their memory for a long, long time.' -- Sally Smith, author of Magnificent Women and Flying Machines, and The Women Who Went Round the World ‘A captivating story of courage, belief, and disillusionment under the persistent tyranny of Russian imperialism. Even after 90 years, Kirsti’s story is a testament to the ongoing fight for Freedom. A must-read that captures repeating history through a deeply personal story.' -- Ana Khizanishvili, Human Rights Lawyer ‘Kirsti Huurre recalls a harsh and oppressive environment, but with a vibrancy that will keep you reading, page after page. This is a true story of grit, resilience, strength and courage; above all, it reveals that there is warmth in the coldest of places.’ -- Victoria Panton Bacon, author of Remarkable Women of the Second World War and Remarkable Journeys of the Second World War

'Warm, disturbing and compulsive reading, this extraordinary book tells of lives entangled with love, hope and black despair ... Anyone who reads this fascinating story of life in Stalinist Russia will find it etched in their memory for a long, long time.' -- Sally Smith, author of Magnificent Women and Flying Machines, and The Women Who Went Round the World

Author Information

ANNA HYRSKE's great grandmother KIRSTI HUURRE was the author of the of the memoir Under the Sickle and the Sledgehammer: One Woman's Private Diary from 1930s Soviet Russia. Anna’s career is within the financial industry, currently working as the Principal Responsible Investment Specialist at the Bank of Finland. She has previously written books and articles on investment and finance. KIRSTI HUURRE was the author of the original memoir, Under the Sickle and the Sledgehammer: One Woman’s Private Diary from 1930s Soviet Russia.

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