This is the first history of Mongolia available in English which benefits from access to historic data that only became available following the collapse of the socialist regime in 1990. Accordingly, it highlights the role of international politics, especially the former Soviet Union, Russia, China and Japan, in the shaping of modern Mongolia’s history.
This is a well-written book and a wealth of information on how the Soviet Union under Stalin committed a great atrocity, one of many, in its manipulation of Mongolia. There are a lot of good references in the book and the author pulls all of the facts together in a coherent manner. "The Soviet's goal was to incite revolution in individual countries by interfering in their internal affairs through domestic communist parties." (p. 265). He then expands on the basic premise. The author also has a foundational understanding of all the players in this drama, including Japan. For instance, "Thus, by the beginning of the 1930's Japan had become a totalitarian state with a poor economy, and hostile relations with all her neighbors. Its constitution, parliamentary democracy, and strategic national vision had been forsaken, and external aggression was seen as the only means of resolving the country's numerous problems." (p. 336). This is a really good understanding of history that the author imparts to the reader. I recommend this book very highly.