audiobook The Portable Thomas Jefferson (Portable Library) by Thomas Jefferson in History

Description

Of all the despots of our time; Joseph Stalin lasted the longest and wielded the greatest power; and his secrets have been the most jealously guarded—even after his death. In this book; the first to draw from recently released archives; Robert Conquest gives us Stalin as a child and student; as a revolutionary and communist theoretician; as a political animal skilled in amassing power and absolutely ruthless in maintaining it. He presents the landmarks of Stalin’s rule: the class with Lenin; collectivization; the Great Terror; the Nazi-Soviet pact and the Nazi-Soviet war; the anti-Semitic campaign that preceded his death; and the legacy he left behind. Distilling a lifetime’s study; weaving detail; analysis; and research; Conquest has given us an extraordinarily powerful narrative of this incredible figure.“Thoughtful and thorough and shot through with insight.”—The Washington Post Book World“Definitive . . . a magnificent; even poetic; act of historical retribution.”—The New Leader“Brilliant . . . this book probably is the most cogent and readable account of Stalin’s life yet published.”—The San Diego Union