The first democratically elected leader of Russia - and the first ever to resign voluntarily - reviews his tumultuous years in office and the changes and challenges in his country. Midnight Diaries is Boris Yeltsin's personal, and revealing account of the struggles and upheavals in Russia over the last several years, seen from the perspective of the man whose job it was to pull all the strings together. Growing out of a series of late-night conversations between Mr. Yeltsin and his chief of staff, the book addresses subjects including: the real impact of the coup of 1991; the process of decision-making about Chechnya; Yeltsin's relationships with world leaders including Bill Clinton, Helmut Kohl, Jacques Chirac, Zhao Zemin, and Tony Blair; the real story behind the string of prime ministers he hired and then dismissed; the Russian economy and allegations of corruption; his own health; and his decision to retire from the presidency.