Lenin's politics continue to reverberate around the world even after the end of the USSR. His name elicits revulsion and reverence; yet Lenin the man remains largely a mystery. This biography shows us Lenin as we have never seen him; in his full complexity as revolutionary; political leader; thinker; and private person.Born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov in 1870; the son of a schools inspector and a doctor's daughter; Lenin was to become the greatest single force in the Soviet revolution--and perhaps the most influential politician of the twentieth century. Drawing on sources only recently discovered; Robert Service explores the social; cultural; and political catalysts for Lenin's explosion into global prominence. His book gives us the vast panorama of Russia in that awesome vortex of change from tsarism's collapse to the establishment of the communist one-party state. Through the prism of Lenin's career; Service focuses on dictatorship; the Marxist revolutionary dream; civil war; and interwar European politics. And we are shown how Lenin; despite the hardships he inflicted; was widely mourned upon his death in 1924.Service's Lenin is a political colossus but also a believable human being. This biography stresses the importance of his supportive family and of its ethnic and cultural background. The author examines his education; upbringing; and the troubles of his early life to explain the emergence of a rebel whose devotion to destruction proved greater than his love for the "proletariat" he supposedly served. We see how his intellectual preoccupations and inner rage underwent volatile interaction and propelled his career from young Marxist activist to founder of the communist party and the Soviet state--and how he bequeathed to Russia a legacy of political oppression and social intimidation that has yet to be expunged.
#151982 in Books Stephen E Ambrose 1991-10-15 1991-10-15Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.25 x 1.50 x 6.12l; 1.64 #File Name: 0671747584640 pagesEisenhower Soldier and President
Review
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful. Like the book; but sloppy Kindle text errorsBy Billy BrackenridgeI enjoy reading books by Steven Ambrose; and the two volumes of Eisenhower are up to his standard. Unfortunately the Kindle editions are flawed.The first volume "Eisenhower Soldier and President" has about two typos per page. In processing the text; words are split up in order to make spaces evenly distributed throughout a line. This is annoying and slows down reading. In the second volume; "Eisenhower The President" has no notion of chapters. You can't go to the table of contents and simply navigate to a given chapter; and the reading process indicator has no notion of how many minutes to finish a chapter.I lived in Germany in 1978; and some people old enough to remember Eisenhower didn't have a high opinion of him as he rounded up Russian and Ukrainian agricultural workers. These had been captured in WW II and were sent to live on farms in Germany. After the war; they were forcefully returned to the Soviet Union where they were executed. Ambrose mentions that Eisenhower ordered this despite universal disapproval of his colleagues; but he neglected to mention that Eisenhower's actions resulted in wide spread executions. This issue deserves more than the short paragraph Ambrose devoted to this subject.12 of 12 people found the following review helpful. Terrible translation to ebook.By Sheryl StanekI was very frustrated with all of the errors in this translation. I don't know if it was done by a machine or by someone who doesn't know the language; but it was quite a slog to get through parts of this book due to all of the typos and misused words. It should not have ten dollars. The story was good; that's why it got four stars.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. I like Ike and I like this Book about himBy David D. LawsonA good solid and easily readable book about Ike and his rise to the top of the greasy pole. I especially like the authors coverage of his presidency during what is turning out to be the high point of America as the major world power. All I can say is that we were blessed as a nation to have him. As it turned out to be that he was the right man; at the right time; for the right jobs. All I know is that. We sure could use a man like him right now is all I can say. Hopefully another like him will turn up soon!
