| Stalin - Triumph and Tragedy
(1991)
|
| Front Cover |
Book Details |
|
| Genre |
Biography; Non-Fiction |
| Subject |
Heads of state - Soviet Union - Biography; Soviet Union - history; Stalin, Joseph, 1879-1953 |
| Publication Date |
September 1991 |
| Format |
Hardcover (9.8
x
6.0
mm)
|
| Publisher |
Grove Pr |
| Language |
English |
| Extras |
Dust Jacket; Dust Jacket Cover |
|
| Description |
| Based on archival research, personal letters, interviews, and previously secret files, the author presents a comprehensive biography of the life of Joseph Stalin |
| Personal Details |
| Acquire Date |
6/10/2010 |
| Condition |
Very Good/Good |
| Rating |
0 |
| Links |
Library of Congress
|
|
| Product Details |
| LoC Classification |
DK268.S8 .V5613 1991 |
| Dewey |
947.084/2/092 |
| ISBN |
9780802111654 |
| Edition |
1st American ed. |
| Cover Price |
$29.95 |
| No. of Pages |
642 |
| First Edition |
No |
| Rare |
No |
|
| Notes/Review |
I was a bit conflicted when I began this book. Would it be a fair telling of Stalin's story, or would the author, a Soviet general, sugar coat some aspects of arguably one of history's top five tyrants? For the most part, I think Volkogonov did a good job. The book is quite thorough (at 581 pages of fairly small print it ought to be) and well organized. It's quite readable and engaging, which points to a skilled translator as well as author.
I am somewhat amused at the author's repeated use of the phrase "administrative coercion" when he's talking about war communism, dekulakization, the purges of the late '30's, and so on. Such a nice, harmless phrase for such nasty processes.
Volkogonov describes Stalin's rise to power in the Party as a ride on Lenin's coattails. Stalin made himself the authority on Lenin, the expert, the constant companion. Those who knew better were all killed in the '30's, if not before. Volkogonov's language when discussing Lenin makes me think he drank the Kool-aid himself, which shouldn't surprise me as he wrote this before the fall of the Soviet Union. |
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