History Books Regarding the Soviet Union

[вор в законе]

Greetings

I would like to ask if any of you could suggest me some objective and serious history books regarding the Soviet Union, where i can read about the life during the Soviet Union, the political scene, the cultural scene, the economic policy etc, in order to find out the reasons and the material conditions that eventually lead to the birth of the Nomenklatura which brought the counter-revolution.


Regards

[Luís Henrique]

Originally posted by Red [email protected] 28 2006, 08:29 PM
Greetings

I would like to ask if any of you could suggest me some objective and serious history books regarding the Soviet Union, where i can read about the life during the Soviet Union, the political scene, the cultural scene, the economic policy etc, in order to find out the reasons and the material conditions that eventually lead to the birth of the Nomenklatura which brought the counter-revolution.


Regards
Charles Bettelheim's Class Struggle in the Soviet Union.
Trotsky's History of the Russian Revolution.
John Reed's Ten Days that Shook the World.
E. H. Carr's A History of Soviet Russia.

MIA: History: USSR: Historians (http://www.marxists.org/history/ussr/archive/index.htm)

Luís Henrique

[crowsandcats]

The Unknown Revolution
-Voline

The author was a citizen of Russia. He participated in the 1917 uprising, after which he was squashed by the bolshevik counter-revolution.

As for objective, would you rather read the blatant lies of a statist militant, the secondhand knowledge of some modern, paid intellectual or the account of a common citizen who had no alterior motive than to simply present an account of what really happened?

[Vanguard1917]

It's not exactly a history book, and im not sure what you mean by 'objective', but Trotsky's Revolution Betrayed is a very important study of Soviet social relations.

Otherwise, there's Lane's Politics and Society in the USSR and Hosking's The First Socialist Society. Both are academic studies, so read critically... as always.

[Vanguard1917]

As for objective, would you rather read the blatant lies of a statist militant, the secondhand knowledge of some modern, paid intellectual or the account of a common citizen who had no alterior motive than to simply present an account of what really happened?

Just because it's an 'account of a common citizen', it shouldn't give a study into a complex society any extra credibility. I would rather read the serious in-depth findings of a funded modern researcher than those of an anarchist bullshitter... even if he 'was there when it happened'.

[crowsandcats]

The study of a complex society is made simple by studying it's leader.

Trotsky is not one of the people, he is above the people. A vanguard.

We both know state-funded researches are going to be pushing their own ideological misrepresentation of history. Is this not elucidated by their current position as above the working-class?

And you may see Voline as an "anarchist bullshitter" but the reason I recommend this book is simply because he is not pushing any ideology, not even anarchism. He doesnt say "conditions after the revolution were such and such SO THE ANARCHISTS ARE RIGHT" . A state funded conclusion would be "conditions were bad so revolution is bad" and the conclusion of, say Trotsky would be "the conditions are good (or worth whatever sacrifice or slaughter I deem necessary) no matter what because revolution is good".

[PRC-UTE]

Science and the Soviet Social Order will help answer a lot of what you're wanting to know. It's an academic book. Your best bet would be to get it through a library.

[Zeruzo]

If you want the view of the communist party of the USSR itself i recommend: History of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union: Bolsheviks

http://www.forbesbookclub.com/bookpage.asp?prod_cd=ISI91
http://www.isbn.pl/A-HISTORY/

[Zingu]

John Reed's Ten Days that Shook the World.

Haha, you consider that objective?

Its a nice book to read, I enjoy it...but its not exactly objective....

[вор в законе]

Thanks a lot guys.