Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Gripping narrative nonfiction that tells the dramatic story of a remarkable young Texan pianist, Van Cliburn, who played his way through the wall of fear built by the Cold War, won the hearts of the American and Russian people, and eased tensions between two superpowers on the brink of nuclear war.

In 1958, an unheralded twenty-three-year-old piano prodigy from Texas named Van Cliburn traveled to Moscow to compete in the First International Tchaikovsky Competition. The Soviets had no intention of bestowing their coveted prize on an unknown American; a Russian pianist had already been chosen to win. Yet when the gangly Texan with the shy grin began to play, he instantly captivated an entire nation.

The Soviet people were charmed by Van Cliburn's extraordinary talent and fresh-faced innocence, but it was his palpable love for the music that earned their devotion; for many, he played more like a Russian than their own musicians. As enraptured crowds mobbed Cliburn's performances, pressure mounted to award him the competition prize. "Is he the best" Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev demanded of the judges. "In that case . . . give him the prize!"

Adored by millions in the USSR, Cliburn returned to a thunderous hero's welcome in the USA and became, for a time, an ambassador of hope for two dangerously hostile superpowers. In this thrilling, impeccably researched account, Nigel Cliff recreates the drama and tension of the Cold War era, and brings into focus the gifted musician and deeply compelling figure whose music would temporarily bridge the divide between two dangerously hostile powers.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

This book examines one of the most iconic moments of the Cold War: Van Cliburn's (born Harvey Lavan "Van" Cliburn Jr.) 1958 victory in the piano contest at the first International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. Historian and critic Cliff (The Shakespeare Riots) combines biography and history, telling the story of the small-town Texas boy and his improbable triumph, as well as the larger history of Soviet-American relations. Cliburn's career intersected in an unusual way with events in the Soviet Union, and he had a warm relationship with many Russians, including Nikita Khrushchev. Cliburn played for U.S. Presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Richard Nixon, often at official state functions, and by request for Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and his wife, Raisa, during the 1987 Ronald Reagan--Gorbachev summit. Some writing on Cliburn (such as Howard Reich's The Van Cliburn Story) tend toward hagiography, but Cliff presents a sympathetic yet rounded portrait of the pianist-devout Baptist, devotee of astrology, conservative yet gay, a builder of international goodwill but often politically naïve. Cliff's sources include many Russian-language materials. VERDICT Highly recommended for readers interested in music (especially classical music and the piano) and the history of the Cold War.-Bruce R. Schueneman, Texas A&M Univ. Lib., Kingsville © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly Review

Cliff brilliantly weaves together the politics, personalities, and pianism surrounding the first International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1958. This portrait of a Cold War moment focuses on two remarkable people. The first is Van Cliburn, the courtly, eager 23-year-old from Kilgore, Tex., who combined a winning American openness with a heartfelt love of Russian music. The second is Nikita Khrushchev, an eccentric peasants' son who survived Stalin and went on to undo the worst of his oppressions. Riding high on the success of Sputnik and Soviet nuclear advances, Khrushchev saw the proposed music competition as a way to assert the U.S.S.R.'s cultural preeminence. The program was heavily weighted to Russian music, and many potential competitors felt that a foreigner would not be allowed to win. But Cliburn's mother and teachers had instilled in him a love of Russian repertoire that Moscow audiences grasped from round one. Khrushchev railed against Stalin's cult of personality but did not stand in the way of Cliburn's. This is a well-researched, fascinating look at a special relationship between Van Cliburn and the U.S.S.R. that lasted through low points (the downed U-2, the Cuban missile crisis) and high ones, all the way up to the 1987 summit that resulted in eliminating most of the world's strategic nuclear arsenal. Agent: Henry Dunow, Dunow, Carlson & Lerner Literary. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Booklist Review

*Starred Review* Cliff's (Holy War, 2011) charming biography of pianist and international sweetheart Van Cliburn will send readers to YouTube clips to help them understand how this long, tall Texan rivaled Elvis in popularity, most especially in the Soviet Union. In 1958, Cliburn won Moscow's first International Tchaikovsky Competition, with the New York Times' front page blaring, U.S. Pianist, 23, Wins Soviet Contest. The Russians thronged the stages then and whenever Cliburn performed in the USSR, as he did many times, chanting the nicknames, Vanya, Vanyusha! What makes this book so compulsively readable is Cliff's understanding and descriptions of the music itself, which add a thrilling delight to a story that is already thrilling and delightful. Cliburn seems honestly kind and nice to wigs big and small, to his mother, to his friends. Colorfully detailed chapters intermix the often grisly situation in the Soviet Union with Cliburn's life in the U.S., attending Juilliard, performing, and remaining close to his Texas roots but also returning to the Soviet Union and his many Soviet admirers. Cliff also covers views on music, composers, and events during the Cold War; how can that chilly time seem so heartwarming? It's Vanya all the way in a biography for music lovers, Cold War devotees, and all readers seeking a true feel-great story.--Kinney, Eloise Copyright 2016 Booklist