A People's History of the Russian Revolution
Series: People's History
An alternative, narrative history of the Russian Revolution published in its centenary
Faulkner rejects caricatures of Lenin and the Bolsheviks as authoritarian conspirators, 'democratic-centralists' or the progenitors of Stalinist dictatorship; though short-lived, the Revolution of October 1917 was an explosion of democracy and creativity. Crushed by bloody counter-revolution, its socialist vision was ultimately displaced by a monstrous form of bureaucratic state-capitalism.
Laced with first-hand testimony, this history rescues the democratic essence of the revolution from its detractors and deniers, offering a perfect primer for the modern reader.
Published in partnership with the Left Book Club.
Neil Faulkner is a historian and archaeologist. He is the author of numerous books, including A Radical History of the World (Pluto, 2018), A People's History of the Russian Revolution (Pluto, 2017) and Lawrence of Arabia's War (Yale, 2016).
'<em>A People's History of the Russian Revolution</em>, written by one of the finest historians on the left, is a vital contribution to the debate over the legacy of the Revolution and an essential defence of the revolutionary experience' - John Newsinger, author of The Blood Never Dried: A People's History of the British Empire
'Among the countless books which are beginning to appear as the centenary of the Russian Revolution approaches, there is a real need for a clear, historically reliable popular account from a socialist perspective. Neil Faulkner's <em>A People's History</em> is that account' - Neil Davidson, author of We Cannot Escape History: Nations, States, and Revolutions (Haymarket, 2015)
'<em>A People's History of the Russian Revolution</em> reeks of the vodka, blood, and gunpowder of one of the must vital and important periods in human history. It is a powerful book for an anniversary those in charge would rather we forgot' - Tansy E. Hoskins, author of Stitched Up: The Anti-Capitalist Book of Fashion (Pluto, 2014)
'Vivid and readable ... A valuable perspective on a world-shaking event' - Karen Shook, Times Higher Education
'Lively, sometimes contentious, and very readable' - Manchester Review of Books
'A very important contribution ... Very well-written [and] readable' - International Journal of Russian Studies
Acknowledgements
Dates, Names, Prices and Wages
Maps
Introduction
Part I: The Spark, 1825-1916
1. The Regime
2. The Revolutionaries
3. Lenin and the Bolsheviks
4. The Great War
Part II: The Tempest, 1917
5. The February Revolution
6. Dual Power
7. Counter-Revolution
8. The October Days
Part III: The Darkness, 1918-1938
9. World Revolution?
10. The Revolution Besieged
11. Stalinism
Epilogue: A Century of War and Revolution
Timeline
Bibliography
Index
eBook ISBN: 9781786800206
304 pages
129mm x 198mm