A History of the Soviet Union from the Beginning to Its Legacy

by Peter Kenez

This concise yet comprehensive textbook examines political, social, and cultural developments in the Soviet Union and the post-Soviet period. It begins by identifying the social tensions and political inconsistencies that spurred radical change in Russia's government, from the turn of the century to the revolution of 1917. Peter Kenez presents this revolution as a crisis of authority that the creation of the Soviet Union resolved. The text traces the progress of the Soviet Union through the 1920s, the years of the New Economic Policies, and into the Stalinist order. It illustrates how post-Stalin Soviet leaders struggled to find ways to rule the country without using Stalin's methods - but also without openly repudiating the past - and to negotiate a peaceful but antipathetic coexistence with the capitalist West. This updated third edition includes substantial new material, discussing the challenges Russia currently faces in the era of Putin.

Genres: History, Russia, Soviet Union, Politics, Nonfiction

382 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 24, 2016

About the author

Peter Kenez, Ph.D., is a Professor Emeritus in the History Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz. A founding faculty member of UCSC's Stevenson College, Kenez received his Ph.D. from Harvard University. He has been teaching Russian and modern European history at UCSC since 1966.

Mr. Kenez' research interests include Russian history, Eastern Europe, 20th-century Europe and Soviet film. At UCSC, he has taught courses in each of those areas, as well as Modern European History, the Holocaust and Jewish social history. He is the recipient of an Excellence in Teaching award.

Kenez is a native of Hungary and a Holocaust survivor. He is the author of eight books, including A History of the Soviet Union from the Beginning to the End and the autobiographical Varieties of Fear: Growing Up Jewish Under Nazism and Communism. His most recent work is entitled From Antisemitism to Genocide; the Origins of the Holocaust.

Reviews

[Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredibly worthwhile.

Some pronouncements will no doubt ruffle a few Marxist-Leninists, but I found Kenez's book laudably empty of liberal sentimentalism. In particular, he does not pine over some hypothetical democracy that could have somehow risen from the ashes of the Provisional Government--and he is quite good at explaining why the Soviets were able to maintain power where both aristocrats and elected officials failed.

[Kristy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Required reading for a class in Russian history but I actually really enjoyed it. I found the writing style accessible and not too academic and very interesting and informative.

[Brent Bauman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Very comprehensive. It doesn’t get into the minutia of my last book “The Soviet Century” but this one was far more accessible and I found the material a little less tedious and easier to digest. I especially loved the conclusions drawn and the debunking of modern myths. The book goes through 2017 so missed the way the Ukrainian war has spun out of control but it provides an extremely useful insight into its beginning

Highly recommend

[Eric · Rating 2 out of 5]

Solid coverage of an important topic. Kenez's idea of a "crisis of authority" leading to the beginning of the Soviet system and the collapse of the Soviet system is compelling. The organization of the book felt off. The same ideas seemed to repeat under multiple sections, making the book feel very circular.

[Caleb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the inaccuracies, odd speculation and cold war non sense it offers a compelling narrative. More pop history than anything else.

[JJS. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very general and broad overview of Soviet and post-Soviet Russian history. Nothing exceptional with the writing, but if you know little about Soviet or post-Soviet Russian history, then this is a good book to read because it cover most aspects, and the author provides a extensive list at the end of other, more specific, narrowed down works of the history. Its a good book if you want to find a way to get into this history, because it can be difficult to know where to start and/or what you're interested in reading about specifically.

[Teddy Paris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful for understanding the history of the Russian Empire, the USSR, and modern Russia.