The Karl Marx and Capitalism exhibition at the German History Museum in Berlin

On July 4th, I visited the “Karl Marx and Capitalism” exhibition at the German History Museum in Berlin, twice in one day. I did the exhibition first in the morning, and then went back in the afternoon for the guided English tour. It was a really good exhibition, and remarkably well put together and thought out. It was very text heavy, so there weren’t a lot of images, but I enjoyed the presentation of Marx’s ideas within the context of their time.

The German History Museum also conducted an interesting survey of Germans and their opinions of Marx in 2021. Not surpassing, the East Germans have a much more positive vision of Marx than those in the West. I am posting some highlights of the exhibit here, but if you happen to be in Berlin this summer, it is well worth a visit.

An amazing weekend

So after a week of COVID isolation, I tested negative just in time for the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Since I was not at home in the U.S. to hit the streets for a protest, I went to Christopher Street Day in Freiburg instead. We also went to a massive flea market (and I bought three new typewriters) and on Sunday we went to to see the Marriage of Figaro at the Stadttheater Freiburg. Lots of escapism!

A gift from Germany

Well, after avoiding this damn virus for over two years, it finally caught up with me. I officially have Covid and I am sick as a dog. I have had 4 doses of Moderna, so I hope it passes quickly. For now, I’m just pounding the fluids.

Mourning the loss of my father-in-law

I can’t think of any other occasion for which I would ever post photographs of Ronald Reagan or George H. W. Bush on my website, but I am making an exception here because my ex-father-in-law passed away last night in his sleep at the age of 93.

Since my own dad and I had a difficult relationship (and he died suddenly in 2001 after we stopped talking in 1998), Velitchko Velitchkov was like a surrogate father to me for the last 24 years. Even after my divorce from their son, my ex-in-laws welcomed me into their home and invited me to sit at their table for major holidays. I just spent Orthodox Easter with them in April. I was always happy to share Sunday afternoons with him while in Sofia. We often debated politics and watched soccer matches together, and he helped me immensely with my research in Bulgarian over the years. It was peaceful and fast, and I am happy that he did not suffer, but I will miss him dearly.

Pre-Publication Review of Red Valkyries in Library Journal

Ghodsee packs a punch in her short volume focusing on five different Red Valkyries. Resistant to the label “feminist” because of its close association with the western liberal feminist agenda, Ghodsee explores her socialist women activists one by one, tracing their lives and work as they respond to some of the most significant Russian and world events of the 20th century. As an expert in her field, she deftly covers vast amounts of history, political theory, and complicated personal relationships in an accessible way for all levels of informed readers. She invokes a large body of research, which can be seen in the extensive notes section and the “suggestions for further reading” pages. But her prose is never too academic, and the little-known stories of the women are captivating. The Red Valkyries’ accomplishments, in everything from record-breaking sniper kills to the formation of several political institutions for women’s emancipation, help challenge narrow views of what it meant to empower women in the twentieth century. Ghodsee ends the book with nine overarching lessons to take from the women’s lives, which helps reframe their efforts for today’s activists. 

VERDICT A timely and fascinating volume for those interested in Russian and socialist history. 

Reviewed by Halie Kerns , Jun 01, 2022

FedCon 30 in Bonn!

Definitely the nerdiest thing I have done in a very long time, but it was so fun to be at a huge convention with so many fellow Sci-Fi fans in Germany. FedCon is Europe’s largest Star Trek convention and apparently way more manageable than the big Con in Las Vegas. I only had two day passes, but I enjoyed the panels and plunked down the absurd amount of cash to have my photos taken with Brent Spiner and Jonathan Frakes. And it was all in the name of research for my new work on feminist utopias.