Book Report "Rasputin: The Saint Who Sinned" by Brian Moynahan

Brian Moynahan had done what few other historic writers have been able to do: bring history to life. Rasputin's legend is rooted in tales of debauchery and sorcery and yet, as Moynahan offers, there are always two sides to a person's life and to their story. Rasputin: The Saint Who Sinned is that other side. Moynahan does not gloss over the fact that Rasputin was everything people said that he was. He seems to have …

…events which Rasputin capitalized on and in turn was capitalized upon. Just how much he was aware of the role that he was playing or would play in history is unclear, as are a great deal of other issues surrounding his life. What this tale serves to show, in many respects, is the influence that one charismatic person can have on leadership that is so removed from the realities of the people that they govern.