Outskirts Press, INC.

Once a prosperous man, he lost everything but his brain and his experience. At 50 years old, Jeffrey Wilgus Started a new life in Russia during the tumultuous Yeltsen years. The chronicle of this adventure "Russia Becomes You" places a big tender embrace on the face of "unwashed Russia." It's an incredible story that can be enjoyed by both Russians as well as Westerners.







Victor Peshel, The Russian Life







If you enjoyed "Under the Tuscan Sun" and "A Year in Provence", you'll love "Russia Becomes you"







Larissa Tality



Dom Kniga, Moscow

Part romance, part travelogue, "Russia Becomes You" is the extraordinary true story of an American businessman Jeffrey Wilgus' life changing adventure in Russia. At a crossroads in life, yearning for authentic connection and community, Wilgus finds himself drawn to Russia after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Filled with sharply etched images and scenes of Russian markets, architecture, landscape & color of everyday life in Russia as Wilgus becomes one with the people and traditions of old Europe, falling in love with the beauty of the land and the magic of the woman who embodies the passionate character of a nation

Ivan Tourguenev, one of the greates Russian novelists of the 19th centure once stated "Therer is only one good thing with a Russian person and that is his worst opinion of himself."



Unfortunately, the tradition of thinking that way hasn't changed among my compatriots and most American authors are eager to follow it. Jeffrey Wilgus went his way discovering his own Russia and managed not being a professional narrator to write both a wonderful story of the "dangerous land" and a fairytale love story. It covers the Yeltsen era which brought Russia democratic freedoms which we Russians underestimate, perhaps because of the same lame reason - in private we are to much used to caress the worst opinion of ourselves. This book should be published in Russia as well just to warm the Russian hearts with good news about them.



Elizabeth Dombayan

Foreign Literature Monthly