{"title":"Books by Robert Service","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9780141992051","title":"The Penguin History of Modern Russia","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRobert Service's\u003ci\u003e The Penguin History of Modern Russia: From Tsarism to the Twenty-first Century\u003c\/i\u003e provides a superb panorama of Russia in the modern age.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  Russia's recent past has encompassed revolution, civil war, mass terror and two world wars, and the country is still undergoing huge change.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  In his acclaimed history, now revised and updated with a new introduction and final chapter, Robert Service explores the complex, changing interaction between rulers and ruled from Tsar Nicholas II, through the Russian Revolutions of 1905 and 1917; from Lenin and Stalin through to Gorbachev, Yeltsin, Putin and beyond.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  This new edition also discusses Russia's unresolved economic and social difficulties and its determination to regain its leading role on the world stage and explains how, despite the recent years of de-communization, the seven decades of communist rule which penetrated every aspect of life still continue to influence Russia today.\u003cbr\u003e 'Always well-informed and balanced in his judgements, clear and concise in his analysis ... Service is extremely good on Soviet politics' Orlando Figes, \u003ci\u003eSunday Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'A fine book ... it is a dizzying tale and Service tells it well; he has none of the ideological baggage that has so often bedevilled Western histories of Russia' Brian Moynahan, \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cb\u003eRobert Service\u003c\/b\u003e is a Fellow of the British Academy and of St Antony's College, Oxford. He has written several books, including the highly acclaimed \u003ci\u003eLenin: A Biography\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eRussia: Experiment with a People\u003c\/i\u003e,\u003ci\u003e Stalin: A Biography \u003c\/i\u003eand\u003ci\u003e Comrades: A History of World Communism\u003c\/i\u003e, as well as many other books on Russia's past and present. His most recent book, \u003ci\u003eTrotsky\u003c\/i\u003e, has been shortlisted for the Duff Cooper Prize.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43201548517554,"sku":"9780141992051","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780141992051_8f77fd2a-9136-4b85-b13f-662564df3d0d.jpg?v=1786011327"},{"product_id":"9781529065824","title":"Blood on the Snow","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eBlood on the Snow\u003c\/i\u003e, Robert Service returns to the subject that has formed the backbone of his long and distinguished career: the Russian Revolution.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A terrific book about a terrifying subject by the best historian of Russia working today' – Michael Burleigh, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Third Reich\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor Service, the great unanswered question is how to reconcile the two narratives that underpin the troubled events of 1917. One puts the blame squarely on Tsar Nicholas II and on Alexander Kerensky’s provisional government that deposed him. The other is the view from the bottom, that of the workers and peasants who wanted democratic socialism, not the Bolshevik dictatorship imposed by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin and his successors.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eService's vivid and revisionist account spans the period from the outbreak of the First World War to Lenin’s death in 1924. He reveals that key seeds of the revolution were sown by the Tsar's decision to join the war against Germany in 1914. He shows with brutal clarity how those events played out, eventually leading to the establishment of the totalitarian Soviet regime, which would endure for the next seven decades.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNicholas II, Kerensky and Lenin are to the fore, but Service enriches his narrative by drawing on little-known diaries of those such as the Vologda peasant Alexander Zamaraev, the NCO Alexei Shtukaturov and the Moscow accounts clerk Nikita Okunev. Through the testimony of these ‘ordinary’ people, Service traces the tortuous path that Russia took through war, revolution and civil war, in his trademark engaging style.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'This authoritative, detailed account shows how Lenin won control of Russia and caused untold misery . . . ' –\u003ci\u003e The Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":57685870707061,"sku":"9781529065855","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":43204535517362,"sku":"9781529065824","price":30.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781529065855.jpg?v=1792599090"},{"product_id":"9781509883059","title":"Kremlin Winter","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eKremlin Winter\u003c\/i\u003e, Robert Service, acclaimed biographer of Lenin, Stalin and Trotsky and one of the finest historians of modern Russia, brings his deep understanding of that country to bear on the man who leads it. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'One of our most accomplished, erudite and prolific historians of modern Russia' – Rodric Braithwaite, \u003ci\u003eNew Statesman\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVladimir Putin has dominated Russian politics since Boris Yeltsin relinquished the presidency in his favour in May 2000. He served two terms as president, before himself relinquishing the post to his prime minister, Dimitri Medvedev, only to return to power for a third time in 2012.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePutin’s rule, whether as president or prime minister, has been marked by a steady increase in domestic repression and international assertiveness. Despite this, there have been signs of liberal growth and Putin – and Russia – now faces a far from certain future.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRobert Service reveals a premier who cannot take his supremacy for granted, yet is determined to impose his will not only on his closest associates but on society at large. Authoritative, engaging and meticulously researched, \u003ci\u003eKremlin Winter\u003c\/i\u003e is a riveting insight into power politics at a time when Russia faces a blizzard of difficulties both at home and abroad.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A masterful portrait of Putin and Russia' – Jack Coleman,\u003ci\u003e The Daily Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43204550164658,"sku":"9781509883059","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781509883059_c7ff2471-2c69-488f-ba57-e7beffdd3a26.jpg?v=1786021639"},{"product_id":"9780330439688","title":"Comrades","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn acclaimed examination of the global history of communism, from one of the finest historians of modern Russia.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘One of the best-ever studies of the subject . . . a remarkable accomplishment.’ – \u003ci\u003eThe Economist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDecades after the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe and the USSR, Robert Service sets out to trace its origins, tracking its spread across the globe throughout the twentieth century. From the USSR to Yugoslavia, Cuba to Western Europe, he chronicles the history of communist theory, spotlighting major events and individuals, and discussing the ideas right at its very heart.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFrom pre-Marxist thought to modern China, Service paints an authoritative portrait of communism and examines its place in the world in the twenty-first century. Unsettling, engaging and brilliantly argued, \u003ci\u003eComrades\u003c\/i\u003e is a superb work of history and one that demands to be read.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘An outstanding book, written with grace and style.’ – Victor Sebestyen, \u003ci\u003eThe Daily Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Bears all the hallmarks of a classic work of historical literature . . . the true international legacy of communism [is] analysed to magisterial effect in this exhilarating work.’ – Hwyel Williams, \u003ci\u003eThe New Statesman\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56285762158965,"sku":"9780330439688","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780330439688_9276748b-bff3-4160-987f-10849b1d2bf5.jpg?v=1786015958"},{"product_id":"9780330439695","title":"Trotsky","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWinner of the Duff Cooper Prize, an acclaimed portrait of Leon Trotsky from one of the finest scholars of modern and Soviet era Russia.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘An outstanding, fascinating biography of this dazzling titan’ – Simon Sebag Montefiore, \u003ci\u003eThe Daily Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTrotsky lived a brilliant life in extraordinary times. A pioneering radical politician, theorist, and icon of the Russian Revolution, he is commonly portrayed by his followers as a pure revolutionary soul and powerful intellect unjustly hounded into exile by Stalin and his henchmen.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRobert Service draws upon a wealth of material from previously unexamined archives to craft a vivid biography of this colossal figure, challenging traditionally held views and assumptions. Spanning from Trotsky’s childhood as part of a Jewish farming family to the years of his banishment, \u003ci\u003eTrotsky: A Biography\u003c\/i\u003e simultaneously chronicles his role in some of the biggest moments in Russian history: the October Revolution, the establishment of the Red Army, the Civil War.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA thoroughly engaging and balanced account, it moves beyond Trotsky’s public persona, painting a rich picture of a sparkling writer, ‘ladies’ man’, philosopher of everyday life and grand seigneur of his household. Robert Service’s research and profound understanding of Russian history combine in this masterful and compelling biography of the man and his legacy.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Exemplary’ – Robert Harris, \u003ci\u003eThe Sunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDiscover more acclaimed biographies from Robert Service: \u003ci\u003eStalin\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eLenin\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56286148231541,"sku":"9780330439695","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780330439695_87122ec4-1d43-49d1-9da1-551122efb682.jpg?v=1786013526"},{"product_id":"9780330518383","title":"Lenin","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA critically acclaimed portrait of Vladimir Lenin, from one of the finest scholars of modern and Soviet era Russia.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'This book deserves a place among the best studies of one of the most fascinating figures in modern history' – Harold Shukman, \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA colossal figure whose influence on twentieth-century history cannot be underestimated, Lenin’s full story remains somewhat unknown. Drawing on previously unopened archives, Robert Service pieces together public and private lives, painting an authoritative portrait of this revolutionary leader.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSeen through Lenin's career, Service chronicles major events in the history of the Soviet Union. From the October Revolution to the politics of inter-war Europe, \u003ci\u003eLenin: A Biography\u003c\/i\u003e traverses the ideas of Marxism-Leninism, the one-party state, economic modernisation and dictatorship. Balanced and thoroughly researched, it is simultaneously a portrait of some of the greatest turning points in modern history.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn discovering the origins of the USSR, Service casts light on the nature of the state and society which Lenin left behind and which have not entirely disappeared from the Russia of today.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Immensely scholarly but also vivid and readable. This is a splendid book, much the best that I have ever read about Lenin' – Dominic Lieven, \u003ci\u003eSunday Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'He has managed skilfully to depict the surreal life of an obsessive, brilliant and stubborn individual' – \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDiscover more acclaimed biographies from Robert Service: \u003ci\u003eStalin\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eTrotsky\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56286591156597,"sku":"9780330518383","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780330518383_aa1e8cc7-2dae-4bfe-9611-bbe5a614f996.jpg?v=1786013610"},{"product_id":"9780888395450","title":"The Best of Robert Service","description":"This new and revised edition of poems about the men and women of the North features the most loved ballads by Robert Service, and is illustrated with lively art by Marilen Van Nimwegen. While living in Whitehorse, Robert Service wrote The Cremation of Sam McGee, and other well-known poems. He wrote and published into his mid-eighties. He was quoted as saying, I just go for a walk and come back with a poem in my pocket.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56295523025269,"sku":"9780888395450","price":13.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780888395450_c2e30e23-5a74-4010-8b75-0d5373d92cff.jpg?v=1786015816"},{"product_id":"9781447293101","title":"The Last of the Tsars","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA masterful and forensic study of the last year of Nicholas II’s reign, from a world-leading scholar of Russian history.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Outstanding . . . essential reading’ – Simon Sebag Montefiore, \u003ci\u003eThe Mail on Sunday\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn March 1917, Nicholas II, the last Tsar of All the Russias, abdicated and the dynasty that had ruled an empire for three hundred years was forced from power by revolution. Robert Service examines the last year of Nicholas's reign and the months between that momentous abdication and his death, with his family, in Ekaterinburg in July 1918.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDrawing on the Tsar's own diaries and other hitherto unexamined contemporary records, Service reveals a man who was almost entirely out of his depth, perhaps even willfully so. A vivid portrait, \u003ci\u003eThe Last of the Tsars\u003c\/i\u003e is simultaneously a compelling account of the social, economic and political foment in Russia in the aftermath of Alexander Kerensky's February Revolution, the Bolshevik seizure of power in October 1917 and the beginnings of Lenin's Soviet republic.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAuthoritative, engaging and meticulously researched, this is a superb work of historical biography.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘A timely and important book . . . he brings to it rare clarity and common sense. His book is a fast-paced account of the last sixteen months of the tsar’s life; brief, sharp, but laced with well-judged feeling for the dramas of the time’ – Catherine Merridale, \u003ci\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDiscover more fascinating Russian Revolution titles from Robert Service: \u003ci\u003eSpies and Commissars\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eBlood on the Snow\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56299982356853,"sku":"9781447293101","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781447293101_b44d9249-a100-41bd-b41a-8841d17493a3.jpg?v=1786020828"},{"product_id":"9781529065787","title":"The August Coup","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Lively and insightful' – \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Magnificent' – \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A masterly piece of scholarship, written like a political thriller' –\u003ci\u003e The Irish Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘Superb . . . A work of quite exceptional scholarship and narrative verve’ – \u003ci\u003eLiterary Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘A must-read for those fascinated by the decline and fall of the USSR’ – Mark Galeotti\u003cbr\u003e'Immensely well-researched and compellingly written . . . grips the reader from page one' – Andrew Roberts\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom the acclaimed author of \u003ci\u003eKremlin Winter\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eBlood on the Snow\u003c\/i\u003e, a dramatic and expertly researched account of an extraordinary moment in Russia’s recent history: the August Coup.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the summer of 1991, a group of eight plotters came together to overthrow Mikhail Gorbachëv, then the president of the USSR. These ruthless conspirators, who occupied positions of high office, declared a state of emergency to restore stability through authoritarian rule. The reality turned out to be a shambolic failure which hastened the fall of the USSR and a pivotal shift from communism to capitalism.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBeginning with a minute-by-minute re-enactment of Gorbachëv’s capture in his holiday home in Crimea, Robert Service follows the plot from its inception to its humiliating collapse. The troubling side effects of Gorbachëv’s well-meant reforms in the Soviet Union – business fraud, government corruption, organized crime and interethnic conflict – increased exponentially, and a New Russia was born. Fathered by Boris Yeltsin, it brought lamentably less benefit to the Russian economy or its people than he had promised.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLinking the years from the coup itself to today’s Russia under Vladimir Putin, \u003ci\u003eThe August Coup\u003c\/i\u003e is a thoroughly compelling and original chronicle of a moment that changed Russian and global politics forever.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":56368989766005,"sku":"9781529065787","price":30.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":57682598658421,"sku":"9781529065817","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781529065787_c6438bd1-7382-4934-8094-da2b92283bc6.jpg?v=1792511527"},{"product_id":"stalin","title":"Stalin","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe acclaimed biography of Joseph Stalin from Robert Service, world-leading expert in modern and Soviet era Russia.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Outstanding . . . will be read for decades' – Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of \u003ci\u003eStalin: The Court of the Red Tsar\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSpanning from childhood to death, Service chronicles every element of Stalin’s life: his formative interactions in Georgia, his youthful revolutionary activism, his relationship with Lenin, with his family, and with his party members. Seen through Stalin’s career, Service recounts some of the greatest events in modern history: the Russian Revolution, World War Two and the early years of the Cold War.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThoroughly researched and balanced, this vivid biography moves beyond the often simplistic portrayals of Stalin as a dedicated bureaucrat or serial political killer, encompassing the multitude of political and personal factors that formed his character.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eDrawing on a wealth of unexplored material from previously unopened archives, \u003ci\u003eStalin: A Biography\u003c\/i\u003e is a masterful, authoritative portrait of the Soviet Union’s longest serving leader.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDiscover more acclaimed biographies from Robert Service: \u003ci\u003eLenin\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eTrotsky\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57466794115445,"sku":"9780330518376","price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780330518376.jpg?v=1785654857"},{"product_id":"the-penguin-history-of-modern-russia","title":"The Penguin History of Modern Russia","description":"Russia's modern history has been shaped by revolution, dictatorship, mass terror, economic upheaval and two world wars, and the country is still undergoing huge change.   In this acclaimed history, now revised and updated with a new introduction and final chapter, Robert Service offers a panoramic account of Russia's turbulent journey from the last years of the Romanov Empire to the present day. He traces the complex relationship between rulers and ruled through the reign of Nicholas II, the revolutions of 1905 and 1917, the rise of Lenin and Stalin, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the emergence of Vladimir Putin's Russia.   This new edition examines the profound consequences of Russia's war against Ukraine, the transformation of its relations with the West, and its efforts to redefine its place in a rapidly changing international order. Throughout, Service shows how the legacies of empire, communism and state power continue to shape the country and its future.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57536543818101,"sku":"9781837315918","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}]}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-robert-service.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}