{"product_id":"9780582327191","title":"The Soviet Union under Brezhnev by William J. Tompson","description":"The Soviet Union Under Brezhnev provides an accessible post-Soviet perspective on the history of the USSR from the mid-1960's to the mid-1980's. It challenges both the `evil empire' image of the USSR that was widespread in the early 1980's and the `stagnation' label attached to the period by Soviet reformers under Gorbachev.   The book makes use of a range of memoirs, interviews, archival documents and other sources not available before 1990 to place Brezhnev and his epoch in a broader historical context. The author: examines high politics, foreign policy and policy making explores broader social, cultural and demographic trends presents a picture of Soviet society in the crucial decades prior to the upheavals and crises of the late 1980'sWhile stopping well short of a full-scale rehabilitation of Brezhnev, Tompson rejects the prevailing image of the Soviet leader as a colourless non-entity, drawing attention to Brezhnev's real political skills, as well as his faults, and to the systemic roots of many of the problems he faced.\u003cbr\u003eBinding: Paperback \/ softback","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56292884087157,"sku":"9780582327191","price":38.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780582327191.jpg?v=1762752992","url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/products\/9780582327191","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}