It's not Russia-town, but...

Anyone raised in the former Soviet Union who lives in Brookline, Allston, or Brighton and feels a hankering for home is definitely in the right place.

An expanding cadre of Russian-friendly shops can be found in all three areas, shops that dispense everything needed for a taste of home.

''Unlike the Chinese who can hop on the T and find everything they need in Chinatown, Boston has no Russia-town," says Alan Balsam, director of the Brookline Department of Health and Human Services.

Serge Bologov, director of the Russian Community Association of Massachusetts, says those who speak Russian tend to cluster in Allston-Brighton as well as Brookline, the Back Bay and Fenway areas, and Roslindale, in addition to some suburban locales. Balsam reports that Russian-speakers are the fastest-growing ethnic group in his town, making up nearly 10 percent of the Brookline population, or roughly 6,000 people.

Whether you were weaned on borscht or just appreciate the culture, the selection of Russian goods is impressive.

Want to read a good mystery in Russian? You can pick one up in several shops in the area or jump the T to Copley and visit the extensive Russian-language collection at the Boston Public Library.

''When I asked the librarian why the Russian section was so big, she told me, 'Everyone knows Russians love to read,' " said Rita Mikhailov, who was devouring Dan Brown's ''The Da Vinci Code" in Russian recently on the Green Line. And make no mistake, Mikhailov wants her books in Russian, but not about Russia.

''I grew up reading Russian novels," she says. ''Now I want to learn about America."

But for those who hunger for Russian culture, there's a ticket booth tucked into a corner of the Russian Village shop at 1659 Beacon St. in Brookline where you can pick up tickets for Russian concerts, plays, ballet performances, and, on a recent visit, a performance by a fellow who trains house cats to leap through flaming hoops. And while you're there, you'll want to check out the Olivier Salad, packed with potatoes, pickles, carrots, and peas in a mayo dressing, along with the kasha and onions and the pelmeni, or meat dumplings.

An interesting bit of demographics can also be found in the shop's array of greeting cards: The ''Happy 85th birthday" cards had to be special-ordered because people live longer in the United States than in the former Soviet Union. ''The company thought it was incredible that people actually make it to 85 here, but they filled the order," said co-owner Stephen Kogan.

For those in the market for a good Russian flick, Book World at 77 Harvard St. in Brookline serves up all manner of Russian DVDs. Then, check out the bulletin board for Russian-speaking baby-sitters. If poetry readings and a selection of used books -- all in Russian, of course -- are your thing, you need look no further than Petropol at 1428 Beacon St. in Brookline.

The area has been a destination for Russian immigrants for decades, but recently the number and outreach of stores with a Russian connection has been expanding.

''We're not seeing the huge influx of Russian-speakers that we saw in the '80s with Perestroika and especially now that terrorism policies have clamped down on people, immigrants from all over," says Inna Agron, co-owner of the big Bazaar on Cambridge shop in Allston. ''But now our businesses are targeting not just Russian people but everyone. We all want to attract other Americans and share our Russian culture with them."

Aisles of foodstuffs, much of it imported, can be found at the Bazaar, 424 Cambridge St., with a wide variety of produce and packaged goods as well as such regional treats as herring, caviar, and beet salad, and a section dedicated to Russian medications, creams, newspapers, and magazines. The Bazaar, which has a smaller version on Beacon Street in Brookline, opened a little more than a year ago, as did the new, expanded Russian Village in Brookline.

''Sausages, smoked fish, Russian salads, these are our comfort foods," says Bazaar manager Arkady Agron, who immigrated nearly three decades ago. ''They're just different from American comfort foods."

Asya Alexandrovich drives in from Newton to pick up one key item: ''Mostly it's the bread," she says. ''American bread doesn't have much character."

Food is also the mainstay at Moscow International Food, at 133 Harvard St. in Allston, including a commanding-looking box of Czar Nikolas II tea. But don't miss the floral flannel housecoats that can transport the Russian-born right back to their childhood visits to Babushka (grandmother).

''That's what everyone wore," says Irene Belozersky of Brookline. ''They're made of a very rough Russian kind of flannel and they're very, very warm."

As for the innocent-looking bundles of dried twigs behind the counter, though mystifying to Westerners, any Russian-speaker worth her caviar would identify them as necessary equipment for a Russian spa -- or banya -- treatment said to increase circulation.

Speaking of banya, you can have it done at Aqua Therapy & Spa, one of the many Russian-spirited businesses in the Linden Business Center, a brick industrial complex in Allston. Walk through its halls and you'll think you're back in the USSR, since Russian is the official language. Housing two day-care centers -- a multicultural one for kids, a Russian one for seniors -- as well as the Arbat Restaurant, which serves the Russian Benevolent Society, the center also includes offices for Russian-speaking insurance agents and attorneys.

To get a sense of the enormity of this city-within-a-city, you can pick up your copy of the Boston Russian Bulletin in the Business Center lobby, with page after page of realtors, dentists and resume services. Or visit www.Russianboston.net for assorted Russian resources around town. Note: Brush up on your Russian to make use of this site. When last we checked, the English version remained under construction.

Still, Stas Malyuta of Warwick, R.I., speaks for many when he makes a distinction between what he misses and what he doesn't.

Having started his day recently with a banya treatment at the spa, he was at Bazaar on Cambridge picking up Russian delicacies such as sausages and pickles.

''I never miss Russia, to be honest with you," he says. ''I just miss some of the good things about Russia like the food. That's why I'm here."

As the shop's manager, Arkady Agron hears similar sentiments from customers every day.

''Believe me, no one wants to go back, but even when you have a wonderful new beginning, you still never cut off completely from your past.

''There's a difference between being homesick for the so-called motherland and missing the way of life you brought with you."