Two main parts of Anatoly Rybakov are titled after the writers major novels, Children of the Arbat and Heavy Sand, and explore the continuing relevance of these works for contemporary Russia. In contrast to Germany and its former allies, which went through an effective de-Nazification campaign, the Soviet Union experienced two aborted attempts to re-evaluate its totalitarian past and to dismantle Stalinist ideology and institutions: the Thaw and perestroika.