The Phonetics of Russian is intended to help those studying Russian to pronounce the language well, and to give students of general phonetics a knowledge of the phonetic system of Russian. In addition it serves as a reference book on Russian pronunciation. On its publication in 1969 it replaced The Pronunciation of Russian by Trofimov and Jones.

The book provides a straightforward outline of the necessary general phonetic theory and the system of transcription and contains a precise description of the way in which the sounds of Russian are articulated, and how they are affected by the neighbouring sounds. The fundamentals of Russian intonation are described and there is a chapter of passages for practice in Russian pronunciation in which the phonetic transcriptions include accents marking both tone and stress. The Russian text and the English translation of the passages are provided.

Throughout the book constant attention is paid to the problems of the learner and advice given for mastering the sounds.