Russia in Flames

War, Revolution, Civil War, 1914 - 1921

By: Laura Engelstein

Narrated by: Anne Flosnik

October 1917, heralded as the culmination of the Russian Revolution, remains a defining moment in world history. Even a hundred years after the events that led to the emergence of the world's first self-proclaimed socialist state, debate continues over whether, as historian E. H. Carr put it decades ago, these earth-shaking days were a "landmark in the emancipation of mankind from past oppression" or "a crime and a disaster." Some things are clear. After the implosion of the 300-year-old Romanov dynasty as a result of the First World War, Russia was in crisis - one interim government replaced another in the vacuum left by imperial collapse.

In this monumental and sweeping new account, Laura Engelstein delves into the seven years of chaos surrounding 1917 - the war, the revolutionary upheaval, and the civil strife it provoked. These were years of breakdown and brutal violence on all sides, punctuated by the decisive turning points of February and October. As Engelstein proves definitively, the struggle for power engaged not only civil society and party leaders, but the broad masses of the population and every corner of the far-reaching empire, well beyond Moscow and Petrograd.

Yet in addition to the bloodshed they unleashed, the revolution and civil war revealed democratic yearnings, even if ideas of what constituted "democracy" differed dramatically. Into that vacuum left by the Romanov collapse rushed long-suppressed hopes and dreams about social justice and equality. But any possible experiment in self-rule was cut short by the October Revolution. Under the banner of true democracy, and against all odds, the Bolshevik triumph resulted in the ruthless repression of all opposition. The Bolsheviks managed to harness the social breakdown caused by the war and institutionalize violence as a method of state-building, creating a new society and a new form of power.

Russia in Flames offers a compelling narrative of heroic effort and brutal disappointment, revealing that what happened during these seven years was both a landmark in the emancipation of Russia from past oppression and a world-shattering disaster. As regimes fall and rise, as civil wars erupt, as state violence targets civilian populations, it is a story that remains profoundly and enduringly relevant.

©2018 Laura Engelstein (P)2019 Tantor

Solid overview of events

Narrator was excellent! Book is a good comprehensive examination of the origins and aftermath of the Russian Revolution.

Interesting

This appears to be a good academic piece on Russia through the revolution to 1921. I do not have sufficient background to be able to comment on its accuracy. It is not a “spellbinder.“ It certainly raised many interesting points of history that probably anyone who is not a true historian would not know. It is clearly worth reading for someone who wishes to have a good historical view of the period.

Important work of history but very dry

You will learn a lot if you read this book. unfortunately, it's one of the driest books I've ever read. not for the faint of heart. but if you can make it through, you will come out of the experience extremely well informed about a pivotal moment in world history.