Catherine the great and potemkin was shortlisted for the samuel johnson prize. In the young stalin montefiore has excelled even his previous book on stalin by researching the all powerful dictators youth and describing in brilliant detail his ruthless and blood laden path to power. Montefiore tells the story of a charismatic, darkly turbulent boy born into poverty, scarred by his upbringing but possessed of unusual. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. Young stalin tells the story of an exceptional, charismatic, darkly turbulent young man born into obscurity, fancying himself a poet and a priest, and finally embracing revolutionary idealism as his messianic mission in life. However, formatting rules can vary widely between applications and fields of interest or study. On 17 may 1872, a handsome young cobbler, the very model of a chivalrous georgian man, vissarion beso djugashvili, aged twentytwo, married. His books are world bestsellers, published now in 35 languages. The court of the red tsar won the history book of the year prize at the british book awards. Oct 16, 2007 young stalin tells the story of an exceptional, charismatic, darkly turbulent young man born into obscurity, fancying himself a poet and a priest, and finally embracing revolutionary idealism as his messianic mission in life.
This work is a prequel to the authors 2004 magnum opus court of the red tsar, which covers the second half of stalins long and eventful life. I have to admit that, as a reader, it was disconcerting to find myself rooting for stalin as he tried to avoid capture by the tsars police and as he plotted yet another bank robbery. Young stalin ebook by simon sebag montefiore 9780307498922. Young stalin by simon sebag montefiore, paperback barnes. In an interview with danuta kean, he says, when i was working on stalin, i came across all this materialit was a historians dream like his love letters and things about his youth.
According to stalins biographer robert service, this was stalins first experience with capitalism, and it was raw, harsh and dispiriting. Stalin was always exceptional, even from childhood. Trotsky spends the first chapter discussing stalins childhood, where he describes the young stalin as a child who hates authority and whose hostility was reserved, underhanded, watchful. Generation stalin traces joseph stalin s rise as a dominant figure in french political culture from the 1930s through the 1950s. Joseph vissarionovich stalin born ioseb besarionis dz djugashvili. Simon sebag montefiore based on ten years research, this is the story of how a charismatic, dangerous boy became a student priest, romantic poet, gangster mastermind, prolific lover, murderous revolutionary, and the. The court of the red tsar is a brilliant prehistory of the ussr, a chronicle of the revolution. Simon sebag montefiores young stalin tells the story of the soviet monsters life as a daring gangster in prerevolutionary russia, says peter conrad.
The adventurous early life of the dictator 18781917. A revelatory account that finally unveils the shadowy journey from obscurity to power of the georgian cobblers son who became the red tsarthe man who, along with hitler, remains the modern personification of evil. Montefiore tells the story of a charismatic, darkly turbulent boy born into poverty. The paranoid criminal underworld was stalin s natural habitat, and murderous banditry and political gangsterism, combined with pitiless ideology, enabled stalin to dominate the kremlinand create the ussr in his flawed image. Andrew sobanet brings to light the crucial role french writers played in building stalin s cult of personality and in disseminating stalinist propaganda in the international communist sphere, including within the ussr. The older book from 1950, josef wissarionowitsch stalin is credited as the source for the wikipedia picture which seems obvious is the same photograph and it is dated at 1902. Young stalin is a strong book because montefiore is willing and courageous enough to show both sides of this complex, multitalented and driven man. Young stalin won more about simon sebag montefiore.
Simon sebag montefiore vital prequel to the internationally bestselling biography stalin. Jan 03, 2008 on 17 may 1872, a handsome young cobbler, the very model of a chivalrous georgian man, vissarion beso djugashvili, aged twentytwo, married ekaterina keke geladze, seventeen, an attractive. Before death, i will ask stalin to extract my heart, just before i am burnt in the crematory, from my chest and bury it in my native land, in kyiv, somewhere above the dnipro on the mountainhill. Publishers summary young stalin tells the story of an exceptional, charismatic, darkly turbulent young man born into obscurity, fancying himself a poet and a priest, and finally embracing revolutionary idealism as his messianic mission in life. Very informative, unbiased, a clear approach of how the muderer we call stalin came to be, and how he matured into his image. Jul 14, 20 it was published a year after young stalin and written by the same author, simon sebag montefiore. Publishers weekly 1 oct 2007 russian historian and author montefiore presents an exciting, exemplary biography of the nondescript peasant boy who would become the most ruthless leader in soviet history, a prequel of sorts to his stalin. Montefiores books are published in more than forty languages. Trotskys view tells us more about his own vanity, snobbery and lack of political skills than about the early stalin. Handpicked recommendations to other books that have a similar writing style or theme to young stalin. Stalin grew up in an area where violence was common. Simon sebag montefiore has weaved a historical tale that reads at times like a romantic novel, a crime thriller, an historical epic, rather than just simply another study of the soviet dictator.
Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. Young stalin by simon sebag montefiore and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Oct 14, 2008 simon sebag montefiores books on stalin rank up there with ian kershaws supreme biography on hitler. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. Based on ten years astonishing new research, here is the thrilling story of how a charismatic, dangerous boy became a student priest, romantic poet, gangster. It is a chilling and haunting account that will stay with you long after you have closed the book. This revelatory account unveils how stalin became stalin, examining his shadowy journey from obscurity to powerfrom master historian simon sebag montefiore. For stalin, the book represents the first 3840 years of his life. Simon sebag montefiores books on stalin rank up there with ian kershaws supreme biography on hitler.
Stalin was born ioseb jughashvili on 18 december o. Psychological profiling is big business these days. Young stalin by simon sebag montefiore, signed abebooks. Young stalin tells the story of a charismatic, darkly turbulent boy born into poverty, of doubtful parentage, scarred by his upbringing but possessed of unusual talents. Several priests from gori retrieved the boy, after which beso cut all contact with his wife and son. Equal parts scholar and terrorist, a mastermind of bank robberies, extorti. Any senior police officer can reel off the characteristics of a gang leader or.
Young stalin, by simon sebag montefiore arlindo correia. Young stalin audiobook, written by simon sebag montefiore. Young stalin is a biography of stalin from his birth to the october revolution, covering the first four decades of the life of joseph stalin before he became the all powerful dictator of the soviet union. Simon sebag montefiore is a historian of russia and the middle east. Young stalin is highly recommended, but proceed with caution. Young stalin by simon sebag montefiore is a book about stalin before he became stalin. The book goes on from there, right through stalins early childhood, him and his mother getting badly physically abused by his father nicknamed in the village crazy beso right up to stalins numerous exiles in the frozen, deadly lands of siberia and finishes off just after the october 1917 revolution had succeeded in bringing lenin to power and stalin to the beginning of his job of attaining power in russia. A fellow of the royal society of literature, montefiore lives in london with his wife. Young stalin by simon sebag montefiore books the guardian.
Young stalin is a remarkable adventure story about an exceptional, turbulent young man, born in exoticism, raised in the church, fancying himself a poet, then embracing revolutionary idealism and thereby finding his romantic, messianic mission in life. The book brings stalin up to the brink of the october revolutionit is the first study to deal exclusively with his early lifeand leaves the reader there, somewhat wearied by the high glee with which the author pursues his minor points, but impressed by his diligence in fitting diverse accounts and significant lacunae into the scheme of his puzzle. It is a very good book and i would recommend reading it as it is very interesting and very detailed. Before joseph stalin entered the history books, he was a young, hip atheist and a democratic socialist. Admired as a romantic poet and trained as a priestboth by the time he was in his early twentieshe found. Was that young handsome stalin photo edited at all by the. Another influential text was alexander kazbegis the patricide, with stalin adopting the nickname koba from that of. When did josef wissarionowitsch become sexy stalin. The court of the red tsaris a brilliant prehistory of the ussr, a chronicle of the revolution, and an intimate biography. Buy a cheap copy of young stalin book by simon sebag montefiore. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle coronavirus.
In young stalin, simon sebag montefiores meticulously researched, authoritative biography of stalins early years, the blur. A christian science monitor and seattle times best book of the year. With the wisdom of hindsight, it might have been preferable for the two volumes to have appeared the other way round, but readers are unlikely to be disappointed. The court of the red tsar which received the history book of the year prize at the 2004 british book awards. Perhaps the most telling detail found in the archives about the young stalin comes from a tsarist secretpolice characterization that. The court of the red tsar is a brilliant prehistory of the ussr, a chronicle of the revolution, and an intimate biography.
To see the complete list of this book s readalikes. The court of the red tsar was awarded the history book of the year prize at the 2004 british book awards. Based on ten years of research, young stalincompanion to the prizewinning stalin. Another influential text was alexander kazbegis the patricide, with stalin adopting the nickname koba from that of the books bandit protagonist.
Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of joseph stalin and what it means. May 12, 2007 young stalin by simon sebag montefiore. Young stalin by simon sebag montefiore, signed abebooks passion for books. Young stalin abused as child, he abused millions the. Listen to young stalin by simon sebag montefiore at. This book is based on ten years of research on his younger years, his brutal household alcoholic everyone has heard of stalin. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. May 27, 2010 described by the new york times as a meticulously researched, autoritative biography, young stalin is essential reading for anyone interested in russian history. Equal parts scholar and terrorist, a mastermind of bank robberies, extortion, piracy, and murder, he was so impressive in his brutality that lenin made him, along with.
Now, there are several photos of stalin as a young man before he became head of the ussr. Montefiore s books are published in more than forty languages. Was dictator joseph stalin once a hip, young democratic. Trotsky spends the first chapter discussing stalins childhood, where he describes the young stalin as a child who hates authority and whose. Young stalin describes the life of this communist russian leader from birth through the russian revolution that led to the establishment of communism in russia. We have relied on trotskys unrecognizably prejudiced portrait for too long. Buy young stalin book online at low prices in india young. The adventurous early life of the dictator 18781917 book. Buy young stalin book online at low prices in india. Young stalin offers the most complete, accurate account to date of the future tyrants early years and tells a fascinating tale. The book begins with an unfinished introduction where trotsky attempts to prove his objectivity in relation to the events in the rest of the book, however was never finished due to his assassination.
273 495 1152 618 646 145 1005 667 1459 764 646 302 237 502 33 279 85 686 217 84 581 1016 851 482 1006 1390 214 1423 986 1289 777 868 605 1380 388 885 516 1465