Young Stalin

Product Details

Author : Simon Sebag Montefiore
Binding : Paperback
EAN : 9780753823798
Number of Pages : 512
Product Group : Book
Publication Date : 2008-05-01
Publisher : Phoenix

ASIN : 0753823799

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Editorial Reviews

Review

'this terrific and terrifying biography of the years to 1917.' (THE INDEPENDENT )

'It shares with its predecessor (STALIN THE COURT OF THE RED TSAR) the virtues of fine prose, empathy with a rich range of characters and narrative of great ability.' (Ross Leckie, THE TIMES )

'brilliantly readable history of Stalin.....Sebag Montefiore's re-creation of the world in which his subject's picaresque career unfolded is wonderfully detailed and convincing, and the portrait he paints of an egotistical monster in the making is unforgettable.' (Pick of the Week in THE SUNDAY TIMES )

'this lively and accomplished account of Stalin's "gangsterish", pre-revolutionary youth, which draws on material from newly opened archives.' (THE GUARDIAN )

'bring[ing] to life the unnerving 'young man with the burning eyes'' (THE OBSERVER )

'This colourful account...is a gripping read as well as faultlessly scholarly' (THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH )

'this zippy prequel' (EVENING STANDARD )

'gripping account....... An excellent companion to Montefiore's previous bestseller' (BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE )

'a thrilling portrait of Lenin's chief gangster and successor.' (DAILY EXPRESS )

Product Description

Stalin remains one of the creators of our world - like Hitler, the personification of evil. Yet Stalin hid his past and remains mysterious. This enthralling biography that reads like a thriller finally unveils the secret but extraordinary journey of the Georgian cobbler's son who became the Red Tsar. What forms such a merciless psychopath and consummate politician? Was he illegitimate? Did he owe everything to his mother - was she whore or saint? Was he a Tsarist agent or Lenin's chief gangster? Was he to blame for his wife's premature death? If he really missed the 1917 Revolution, how did he emerge so powerful? Born in poverty, exceptional in his studies, this charismatic but dangerous boy was hailed as a romantic poet, trained as a priest, but found his mission as fanatical revolutionary. The secret world of Joseph Conrad-style terrorism was Stalin's natural habitat, where he charmed his future courtiers, made the enemies he later liquidated, and abandoned his many mistresses and children. Montefiore shows how the murderous paranoia and gangsterism of the criminal underworld, combined with pitiless ideology, taught Stalin how to triumph in the Kremlin.

Synopsis

Stalin remains one of the creators of our world - like Hitler, the personification of evil. Yet Stalin hid his past and remains mysterious. This enthralling biography that reads like a thriller finally unveils the secret but extraordinary journey of the Georgian cobbler's son who became the Red Tsar. What forms such a merciless psychopath and consummate politician? Was he illegitimate? Did he owe everything to his mother - was she whore or saint? Was he a Tsarist agent or Lenin's chief gangster? Was he to blame for his wife's premature death? If he really missed the 1917 Revolution, how did he emerge so powerful? Born in poverty, exceptional in his studies, this charismatic but dangerous boy was hailed as a romantic poet, trained as a priest, but found his mission as fanatical revolutionary. The secret world of Joseph Conrad-style terrorism was Stalin's natural habitat, where he charmed his future courtiers, made the enemies he later liquidated, and abandoned his many mistresses and children. Montefiore shows how the murderous paranoia and gangsterism of the criminal underworld, combined with pitiless ideology, taught Stalin how to triumph in the Kremlin.

About the Author

Simon Sebag Montefiore's books are international bestsellers in 27 languages. CATHERINE THE GREAT AND POTEMKIN was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson, Duff Cooper, and Marsh Biography Prizes. STALIN won the History Book of the Year Prize at the 2004 British Book Awards. Montefiore is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, novelist, and TV presenter, he lives in London with his wife, the novelist Santa Montefiore, and their two children. He is now writing JERUSALEM: THE BIOGRAPHY.

Customer Reviews

Amazing (2008-08-25)

This is a great biography. It's fast moving, full of action and Montefiore really brings the young Stalin to life as you flick from page to spell-binding page. You find yourself at turns liking the passion and charisma of the protagonist, and then repelled by his nascent cruelty and emotional coldness.This book really explodes the myth that Stalin was simply a "grey blur" before he began to seize power in the 1920's. He was a competent, intelligent and experienced revolutionary, who was important to Lenin and popular with the party grass roots. His drive and personal magnetism are awe-inspiring, and Sebag Montefiore's book is an exercise in demonstrating how true greatness is born. I can't wait to read the author's book on Stalin's later life, "The Court of the Red Tsar".

Stalin planned 9/11 (2008-08-15)

It is now twenty years since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the triumphal proclamation of the victory of capitalism and the 'end of history'. Yet this victory has not made the world a better, safer place. Rather it unleashed imperialst aggression on massive scale, accompanied by ethnic hatred and economic chaos. Unable to justify the bankrupcy of their own system,the apologists for capitalism have continually been forced to exhume the corpse of communism,dress it up in a fresh shroud, and show it to the world. Nationalist despots like Milosovic and Saddam were described as being essentially communist - being in possession of a strong, murderous state - whilst North Korea was linked in with the Axis of Evil. Even today, the propaganda offensive against China is in full swing, whilst the Russo - Georgian conflict is presented in Cold War terms.Who would have believed the West would miss the Cold War so much ? It provides ideological certainty in these uncertain times. Our enemy today, of course, is Islam, and how convenient to show the public its true power and evil than by establishing a link with Stalin, officially the most evil man in history.The author presents the October Revolution a terrorist conspiracy. Marxist theory is mentioned, but is not allowed to intrude on the real issues. The Bolshevik Party is seen to be continually engaged in bank robberies, murder of opponents, intiidation and gangsterism, its memebers a collection of psycopaths who loved their work. Virtually no attention is paid to the repressive nature of Tsarism which produced centralised party organisation, nor is there any attention paid to the political work of the revolutionay groups amongst the workers and peasants at this time. Only very briefly does Montefiore touch on the brutality of the Russian workers existence, when he describes the conditions in the Baku oilfields (p197).The tactics of the Bolsheviks of 'the gun and the ballot box' in our own age have been used by the IRA, Hamas and Hizbollah(p179).Having established the terroristic methods of the Bolsheviks, Montefiore goes on to creaed a tenuous link to Islam. Marxism is presented as a secular religion. The Bolsheviks are described as Marxists 'of semi-Islamic fervour' (p230). Stalin himself, the product of an Orthodox seminary, is revealed as having links to 'a Muslim Bolshevik group', whatever that may mean. This book is a combination of Cold War and anti-Islamic propaganda, reflecting the pressing needs of our rulers, and is significant for this fact rather than being important as an historical work in its own right. If you want a more reasoned discussion of Stalin, I suggest Isaac Deutschers 'Stalin'.

How could this man have become the hard hearted monster of the Soviet Republic? (2008-05-14)

A topic I would never have thought could be so very interesting. The early years of the black hearted Red Tsar and what made him become so dogmatic and ultimately wicked. A fascinating blockbuster of a story, with qualities that keep you reading to the end. Interspersed with photographs and even poems by 'Soso' the 'romantic'. Joseph did not have much going for him in his early life with an alcoholic, shoe maker father and headstrong and angry mother and I admired his thirst for knowledge and ambition in his youth, always trying to gain an education where so little was available. He ruthlessly strived to achieve his aim to become the leader of the USSR and in my opinion regardless of his charming manner, good looks and high intelligence he seems to have had the symptoms a psychopath. His ability to encourage sympathy from people for himself at any opportunity and his cause whilst hiding a completely hard heart is evidence of that.A great book for anyone interested in the former USSR and understanding the present situation and the Russian people.

Best biography for years (2008-05-07)

Having just finished Tim Jeal's excellent biography of Stanley I stated that that was the best biography I had read for years. I immediately started on this one and three days later am pleased to announce that THIS is the best biography I have read for years. I could resort to cliches (OK I will resort to cliches)this is a virtually unputdownable, page turner. A boys own adventure - well perhaps a bit brutal to be boys own, but in all seriousness, if someone came to a publisher with this as a work of fiction they'd be laughed out of court at the sheer improbability of it. But having said that, the rip-snorting action packed nature of this work allows the prose to flow in a fictional "style" as it were, making this a slightly better "read" than the same author's "The court of the Red Tsar" about Stalin's years in powerI'm not going to repeat a lot of facts and snippets from the book that have become apparent since the opening of the Russian archives, all I'm going to do is urge you to read this book. You will definitely not regret it.

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