Alexander Herzen's own brilliance and the extraordinary circumstances of his life combine to place his memoirs among the greatest works of the modern era. Born in 1812; the illegitimate son of a wealthy Russian landowner; he became one of the most important revolutionary and intellectual figures of his time: as theorist; polemicist; propagandist; and political actor. Fifty years after his death; Lenin revered him as the father of Russian revolutionary socialism. Tolstoy said he had never met another man "with so rare a combination of scintillating brilliance and depth." His monumental autobiography is an unparalleled record of his—and his century's—remarkable life.Herzen's story of his privileged childhood among the Russian aristocracy is lit with the insight of a great novelist. With a trained historian's sense of the interaction of people and events; he limns the grand line of revolutionary development from the earliest stirrings of Russian radicalism throughthe tumultuous ideological debates of the international. His close friends and enemies—Marx; Wagner; Mill; Bakunin; Garibaldi; Kropotkin—are brought brilliantly alive. Dwight Macdonald's knowledgeable and fluent abridgment makes this great work readily available to the modern reader.
#1331552 in Books 1999-02-01 1999-02-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 1.35 x 5.76 x 8.56l; #File Name: 0517205017416 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Print much too small.By ChuckPrint was much too small. Hard to read and I have great vision. Publisher packed way too much into the pages. I returned it immediately.14 of 15 people found the following review helpful. Very Well Researched and tied together.By JacquesThis book was not what I thought it would be. Its part stat book; part biography; part history of the leagues. It is not as story-like as I expected and seems a bit fractured in places. Having said that; its a wonderful book that conveys a lot of the zeitgeist of the time. For a book with so many facts; it is surprisingly easy to read. Though; at times it seems to repeat itself; it still conjures up an age when African American players wore their caps sideways; introduced stealing bases on a regular basis etc... It is a shame that so many sad periods in world history become fascinating periods to read about for generations that follow after. Educational; entertaining and solidly researhed; bravo!10 of 10 people found the following review helpful. Oh; what a game.By Douglas S. WoodRobert Peterson originally published this book in 1970 so it's really the original and standard history of the Negro Leagues. Peterson not only tells the history of these leagues and some of the great players; but also provides brief biographical sketches of dozens of players whose big league service would otherwise be lost to history. The book also has extensive appendices with annual standings and box scores of all-star games. The book gives us glimpses into Jim Crow America (and it was not just in the South).Peterson portrays the often overlooked fact that the Negro Leagues were a business venture run almost exclusively by and for black people. And it was a tough business at that; but one that drew often sizeable crowds; especially on exciting and exhausting barnstorming tours. The Negro Leagues could not survive integration as its best players were siphoned off to the 'majors'. Despite the obvious benefits to those men who were finally broke through the wall of prejudice; the reader also understands that there was a sense of loss when the leagues shut down in 1960. More powerfully; the reader experiences the lost opportunities suffered by those players who never got the chance to play in the majors and make major league money; like Jimmie Crutchfield; the Black Lloyd Waner; who barely made a living on one side of Pittsburgh playing for the Crawfords while Waner hauled down $12;000 a year (a princely sum at the time) playing for the Pirates.A must read for anyone interested in baseball; race relations; or American history.
