600 pages, 8 plates, cloth, frayed dust jacket, covers little stained else very good. From the dj: Although one of the powerful figures of our time, Joseph Stalin, surrounded by an almost mythological aura, is still an enigma to most of the world. In this biography - the result of more than 20 years of close study of Soviet affairs - Mr. Deutscher shows clearly and objectively the forces that have shaped Stalin's life and have placed him in the dominating position on the Russian scene and in the Communist movement for more than a quarter of a century. This book is neither an apologia for nor an indictment of Stalin, but an attempt to describe and analyze his complex role and personality with as much detachment as is possible in the portrayal of a contemporary and highly controversial figure. Mr. Deutcher treats Stalin as a historical object and not has the hero or villain of current politics, and describes his organize function in the Russian Revolution throughout its multiple and contradictory phases of development.

JOSEPH STALIN BIOGRAPHY SOVIET UNION RUSSIA RUSSIAN HISTORY WWII