The Diary of a Soviet Schoolgirl, 1932-1937

Nina Lugovskaya. The Diary of a Soviet Schoolgirl, 1932-1937. Translated by Joanne Turnbull. Moscow: Glas New Russian Writing, 2003. 215 pp. Photographs. $17.95, paper.

Nina Lugovskaya's diary is one of a number that have emerged from the NKVD archives since 1991. It is a valuable and revealing document on a number of levels. The diary covers Lugovskaya's teenage years and contains much of the familiar angst that is associated with that period in a person's development. Lugovskaya agonizes over friendships, first crushes, and insecurities about her appearance. She envies her older sisters and seeks to find a special talent that will make her more noticeable in the eyes of her …