A wild tale of life and business in the new Russia. John Mole went to seek his fortune in the New Russia. His Big Idea was to set up baked potato restaurants to rival McDonald's and Pizza Hut. He came back with the rights for revolutionary biotechnology for cleaning up air pollution. In between he tangled with fantasists, Stalinists, Tolkeinists, corrupt bureaucrats, hopeful oligarchs and hopeless biznismyen, muggers, the mafia and ordinary Russians just struggling to survive.

A wild tale of life and business in the new Russia. John Mole went to seek his fortune in the New Russia. His Big Idea was to set up baked potato restaurants to rival McDonald's and Pizza Hut. He came back with the rights for revolutionary biotechnology for cleaning up air pollution. In between he tangled with fantasists, Stalinists, Tolkeinists, corrupt bureaucrats, hopeful oligarchs and hopeless biznismyen, muggers, the mafia and ordinary Russians just struggling to survive.