Books, Arts & Manners: On a Dime

The Turning Point: Revitalizing the Soviet Economy, by Nikolai Shmelev and Vladimir Popov (Doubleday, 312 pp., $22.95)

The Turning Point takes a look at the Soviet “experiment” in economics, examines what didn’t work and why, and suggests how perestroika can help avoid mistakes in the future. The title reflects the belief of the authors—both of them Soviet economists—that the Soviet Union is at an historic crossroad.