Lenin

Few political reputations have collapsed quite as quickly as that of Lenin, the ideological guru of Russian Communism, the hero of the revolution of October 1917, and the first leader of the Soviet Union. Just as the Berlin Wall was pulled to the ground, so were thousands of statues of Lenin toppled across Eastern Europe and the new Russia in the early 1990s. But now that the dust has settled, and the Cold War is over, historians can be more objective about the life and achievements of Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov (Lenin was his adopted revolutionary name). Robert Service's book is the first major biography of Lenin for several decades and it benefits from the thaw that has opened up previously inaccessible material, particularly on Lenin's family and his medical history. Born into a wealthy family of landowners, lawyers and government officials, Lenin's revolutionary path was marked out when his elder brother was executed for his part in an assassination plot on the Tsar. From that point on, aided by his sisters, his wife and a loyal but argumentative band of Bolshevik followers, Lenin committed himself to the overthrow of the Tsarist regime, enduring exile, prison and ostracism in the process. This compelling and action-packed book brings Lenin and Leninism to life in a way that no previous account has managed to do. --Miles Taylor

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Excellent book, impressively written - Rated
Definitely a must-have for anyone interested in Russian history. Well written, brilliantly researched, a classic.

Lenin - The Genius - Rated
What do you know about Lenin? I knew he was chief instigator of the October Revolution and the man behind Leninism and inside the mausoleum. That was all until this book came along. It turns out that Volodya was an intellectual jagganath and an egoist of manic proportions.

It is instructive to trace how someone so well educated can turn out to be so tunnel visioned and so monstrous. I think Robert Service provides an incredible account from Lenin's youth and his stellar academic record to his conversion to the cause through to his duplicitous rise to power. This is an amazing tale of a madcap without whom the history of the 20th century would have been so very different and arguably better.

The problem here is that Service spoils the good work with a healthy sprinkling of personal comments like "that serves him right" etc. This give the writing a polish of amateurism. Nevertheless, this is the only Lenin book that I will read. If you're looking for a book heavy on political writings and revolutionary theory then this is probably quite not the book for you. However if you just wish to understand this oddball of a genius - spoilt brat, lover, anarchist, marxist, fervid revolutionary, friend and foe, doublecrosser, rhetorician, leftist saint - then you should read this.

Take care to step over the author's irritating opinions.

A Party Without Guests - Rated
There is no doubt that Lenin achieved a level of recognition that will continue for as long as humans maintain a sentient capacity. The fact remains, however, that he gained this recognition largely through his association with others. Robert Service's biography does not acknowledge this aspect. In fact, those central to Lenin's rise are not even mentioned.
Martin Amis brilliantly encapsulated this problem in his 2004 Guardian review: 'Service's biography of this unique figure is flawed not by its inclusions but by its myopic exclusions. It is impossible to present a balanced account of Lenin without reference to the other three Beatles.'

Very Good - Rated
Lenin by Robert Service is a very interesting and well-written book which deals with the life of the great revolutionary. Although it is perhaps not as detailed as some people would like it is very enjoyable and gives an insight into the life of this middle-class intellectual who became a working-class leader.

Well written, but don't expect the full story of 1917 - Rated
A very well written book that successfully evokes the atmosphere of turn of the century Russia. Unusually for a biography, the youth of Lenin is actually quite interesting, and Service knows to quickly move on to keep the narrative moving. Occasionally, however, you wish for more details - the execution of his brother, for example, happens so suddenly it is almost shocking.

By the middle of the book you are yearning to get to the revolutionary events of 1917, but again once there, it would have been good to have more details about events 'on the ground', and if you want a book about the 1917 revolution, it may be better to buy something more specifically about that (the impression here is that Lenin capitalised on circumstances more than he was actually involved in them). That aside, the whole is a fascinating tale told well. Service is not afraid to give his own occasional opinion on matters, while there's some analysis of how the communist revolution affected politics elsewhere in Europe, particularly in the reactive rise of fascism.