{"product_id":"stalin-1","title":"Stalin","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBook info:\u003c\/strong\u003e Stalin (Hardcover, 736 pages – Belknap Press, 2006) – Belknap Press, 2006. Language: Eng.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCondition: Good\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOverthrowing the conventional image of Stalin as an uneducated political administrator inexplicably transformed into a pathological killer, Robert Service reveals a more complex and fascinating story behind this notorious twentieth-century figure. Drawing on unexplored archives and personal testimonies gathered from across Russia and Georgia, this is the first full-scale biography of the Soviet dictator in twenty years.Service describes in unprecedented detail the first half of Stalin's life--his childhood in Georgia as the son of a violent, drunkard father and a devoted mother; his education and religious training; and his political activity as a young revolutionary. No mere messenger for Lenin, Stalin was a prominent activist long before the Russian Revolution. Equally compelling is the depiction of Stalin as Soviet leader. Service recasts the image of Stalin as unimpeded despot; his control was not limitless. And his conviction that enemies surrounded him was not entirely unfounded.Stalin was not just a vengeful dictator but also a man fascinated by ideas and a voracious reader of Marxist doctrine and Russian and Georgian literature as well as an internationalist committed to seeing Russia assume a powerful role on the world stage. In examining the multidimensional legacy of Stalin, Service helps explain why later would-be reformers--such as Khrushchev and Gorbachev--found the Stalinist legacy surprisingly hard to dislodge. Rather than diminishing the horrors of Stalinism, this is an account all the more disturbing for presenting a believable human portrait. Service's lifetime engagement with Soviet Russia has resulted in the most comprehensive and compelling portrayal of Stalin to date.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Robert Service","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53104789324000,"sku":"9780674022584","price":57.96,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/5681\/6608\/files\/51yQM5QSpKL._SY522.jpg?v=1781775726","url":"https:\/\/medicalbook.online\/products\/stalin-1","provider":"medicalbook.online","version":"1.0","type":"link"}