Inside the Stalin Archives: Discovering the New Russia

by Jonathan Brent

Book Overview

To many people, Russia remains as enigmatic today as it was during the Iron Curtain era. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the country had an opportunity to face its tortured past. Here, Brent... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0977743330
• Release Date: December 2008
• Publisher: Atlas
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.97 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 0.1" x 0.5"

Customer Reviews

A Different Stalin

Jonathan Brant arrived in Moscow in January 1992 to negotiate with Russian officials for Yale University Press for access to Soviet historical archives previously unavailable to outsiders. Many trips followed over the next fifteen years. They provide a loose connective thread for this memoir. They also allowed the personal contacts and observations that anchor the book. Brant raises complex questions including why many Russians still esteem both Stalin, a paranoid tyrant, and the oppressive regime he created; and why Russians have acquiesced to Putin's regime as it persistently curtailed democracy and freedom. This book is very much a personal memoir, not a scholarly analysis. Brant offers no formal analysis or final answers. He speaks of the disruption and near chaos in Russian society in January 1992, of the perceived incompetence of the Yeltsin government, of the dissolution of what had been a Russian empire built over almost 400 years and of Russia's loss of international position and prestige. All this was a huge blow to the Russian people who were proud of the old society's accomplishments, achieved at enormous cost in blood and suffering. In the popular view, as well as in the view of some of the elite, Stalin was the architect of all this civil and military success. By comparison, the new regime presided over a breakdown of public order, the collapse of the economy, an end to empire and a much diminished role in the world. No wonder, the book implies, that many in this proud nation are nostalgic for the Soviet regime and are willing to forgive much to the "great leader" who supposedly brought all this success about. Nor is it surprising that the people support Putin, whose regime has (in the popular view) done much to restore public order, international prestige and economic prosperity. I was particularly struck by two features of the book. One was the vignettes offered of life in Russia in the early years of Brant's trips there. Society was almost literally turned upside down and it seemed to many that the worst elements had taken over and reduced everything to chaos. Brant's personal observations and contacts with Russians from this period are enlightening and sometimes quite moving. The second feature was even more eye-opening for me. Before reading this book I thought of Stalin as a typical murderous and paranoid tyrant, a megalomaniac essentially ruling by terror alone while claiming a nonexistent deep understanding of the revolutionary theories of which he proclaimed himself the champion. My view was wrong. Brant got access to Stalin's personal working library. Historical and theoretical works were heavily and insightfully annotated in Stalin's own hand. Stalin also personally oversaw work on official publications expressing Communist theory and doctrine in various formats. He very frequently rewrote them heavily, invariably making the publications better: shorter, tighter, more accurately stated and more vividly phrased. P

History of the Yale Annals of Communism series

As a student of history, and coincidentally a reader of the Annals of Communism series, I found this half history half "memoir" a very provocative read. At the end of the Soviet Union Russia was in the midst of chaos and turmoil. Yet, into this mix comes Jonathan Brent with no idea of what he's about to face. Meeting the various actors he interacts with, and learning about some of their tragic situations and demises, keeps the narrative going pretty quickly. Many of the the Russians he meets I have encountered as authors/editions in various books I've read, and with the details found in this book I can put something of a character/personality to the name. A few complaints: I do think the author is at times a bit too literary and long-winded, specifically when he begins to dissect Babel and Stalin, also, even with over a decade of traveling back and forth between Russia and the US and reading through archives in their original, he still makes at least one mistake in his translation from Russian to English. Lastly, the political atmosphere in Russia, both in the 90s and in this decade, is something I don't think he can comment on with as much insight as some would like. While he did have access to the likes of Yakovlev, I don't think such connections are enough to make some of the claims that he takes the liberty of making. While not anti-Russian, although some nationalists would undoubtedly think that, I believe some are naive. That being said, the overall narrative is quite interesting, insightful and candid.

Amazing book

As an amateur Russian history buff, I enjoyed his journey through his negotiations with the Russians on publishing the archives. I agree with the previous rater (4*) who indicated that it was unclear what was ultimately published. That being said, one can go to YUP under Annals of Communism series to find out. However, this is not spelled out (so as not to "advertise" his press?) so it's not immediately obvious. After reading this book, I have at least a year of reading ahead of me which I very much look forward to. Also, it appeared that he wrote about two thirds of the book, then later added the final third which makes it somewhat disjointed. Minor criticism given my overall fascination with hearing the story.