Comrades : The Rise and Fall of World Communism - Hardcover

Robert Harvey

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0719561477 ISBN 13: 9780719561474

Publisher: John Murray, 2003

Synopsis

Today global communism seems just a terrible historical memory, an expressionist nightmare as horrific as Nazism and the Holocaust, or the slaughter in World War I. Was it only just over a decade ago that stone-faced old men were still presiding over "workers' paradises" in the name of "the people" while hundreds of millions endured grinding poverty under a system of mind-controlling servitude which did not hesitate to murder and imprison whole populations in the cause of "progress"? Or that the world seemed under threat from revolutionary hordes engulfing one country after another, backed by a vast military machine and the threat of nuclear annihilation? In the 1970s, with the fall of South Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, the march of Marxism-Leninism across the world seemed irresistible. Less than two decades later the experiment had collapsed, leaving perhaps 100 million dead, as well as economic devastation spanning continents. Even China now increasingly embraces free market economics. Only in a few backwaters does communism endure, as obsolete as rust-belt industry. This book is a global narrative history of that defining human experience. It seeks to weigh up the balance sheet: why did communism occur largely in countries wrenched from feudalism or colonialism to 20th-century modernism, rather than - as Marx had predicted - in developed countries groaning under the weight of a parasitic middle class? Were coercion and state planning in fact the only way forward for backward countries? What was the explanation for communism's appeal - not least among many highly intelligent observers in the West? Why did it grow so fast, and collapse with such startling suddenness? Robert Harvey sets out the whole epic story, a panorama of human idealism, cruelty, suffering and courage, and provides an often intriguing analysis.

About this title

About the Author

Robert Harvey has been a columnist for 'The Daily Telegraph', an assistant editor for 'The Economist' and an MP serving on the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee. His book 'Liberators: Latin America's Struggle for Independence' was described as 'an exhilarating and wildly enjoyable ride from start to finish' by Simon Sebay-Montefiore. Raymond Seitz, US ex-Ambassador to Britain said of 'A Few Bloody Noses: The American War of Independence', 'Harvey wields his pen like a sabre, slashing with gusto at the cant and received wisdom.' He lives in London and Wales.

Review

'Harvey's historical accounts are fluid and colourful, and his analysis is succinct' -- Anna Applebaum, TELEGRAPH 20030628 'No one makes historical narrative move with more energy and elan than Robert Harvey, who has, in addition, a highly developed sense of human interest' -- The Scotsman 20030628 'Fast moving and well written' -- Contemporary Review 20040101 'Pacey ... engaging and brisk in its broad sweep' -- Daily Telegraph 20040221 'Pacey, engaging and brisk in its broad sweep.' -- The Telegraph 20040221

Edition details

• Publisher: John Murray
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0719561477
• ISBN 13: 9780719561474
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 448