Journalist Sixsmith narrates the battle over the assertion of state control over Russia's Yukos oil company, characterizing it as a negative turning point (a decisive turn away from liberalism)
in Russia's political and economic history and as a titanic and bitter personal struggle between Vladimir Putin and oil oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky. It is this personal rivalry that primarily
structures the narrative, although of course political, legal, and economic developments play an important part in the story. Much of Sixsmith's reconstruction is based on personal interviews
with key players. Annotation 穢2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
