Accidental Czar

In the West`s collective imagination, Vladimir Putin is a devious cartoon villain, constantly plotting and scheming to destroy his enemies around the globe. But how did an undistinguished mid-level KGB officer become one of the most powerful leaders in Russian history? And how much of Putin`s tough-guy persona is a calculated performance? In Accidental Czar, Andrew S. Weiss, a former White House Russia expert, and Brian "Box" Brown show how Putin has successfully cast himself as a cunning, larger-than-life political mastermind - and how the rest of the world has played into the Kremlin`s hands by treating him as one. They shatter all of these myths and expose the man behind the facade.