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Collapse

The Fall of the Soviet Union

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Collapse

By: Vladislav M. Zubok
Narrated by: David de Vries
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A major study of the collapse of the Soviet Union - showing how Gorbachev's misguided reforms led to its demise

In 1945, the Soviet Union controlled half of Europe and was a founding member of the United Nations. By 1991, it had an army four million strong, 5,000 nuclear-tipped missiles, and was the second biggest producer of oil in the world. But soon afterward, the union sank into an economic crisis and was torn apart by nationalist separatism. Its collapse was one of the seismic shifts of the 20th century.

Thirty years on, Vladislav Zubok offers a major reinterpretation of the final years of the USSR, refuting the notion that the breakup of the Soviet order was inevitable. Instead, Zubok reveals how Gorbachev's misguided reforms, intended to modernize and democratize the Soviet Union, deprived the government of resources and empowered separatism. Collapse sheds new light on Russian democratic populism, the Baltic struggle for independence, the crisis of Soviet finances - and the fragility of authoritarian state power.

©2021 Vladislav M. Zubok (P)2021 Tantor 20th Century Europe Modern Russia Soviet Union Military Socialism
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A very thorough summary of the rapid collapse of the Soviet Union, with highlights of the choices made that had they been different, might have produced a very different outcome. Provides a good balance to Western sources as it has context missing from a lot of main stream discussion.

Analysis of the paths not taken

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Excellent and comprehensive study of the fall of the Soviet Union, showing how the collapse was not sudden but rather the result of a long decline with economic strains at the centre. This is a detailed study that will prove to be the new standard work on a critical period in world history that still has ramifications today.

Collapse by V. Zubok

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This book helps provide a better understanding of how Russia and the West arrived at the standoff they are today by deconstructing simplistic Western narratives of the Soviet Union's collapse. In particular, it focuses on Mikhail Gorbachevs reforms and how the manner of their execution opened Pandoras box.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in international relations.

Nuance triumphs over lazy narrative

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Struggled with the narrator the whole way through but a very interesting, detailed analysis, if a bit "textbooky" at times.

Interesting for history fans

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A first rate re-telling of the reasons for, the machinations behind, and the fallout from, the collapse of the USSR. The characters of this drama come alive.

The author cannot hide his pro-soviet sympathies, to the detriment of national actors (be it Lithuanian, Ukrainian or other) , and as such ignores greater centrifugal forces at work , but this does not detract from the overall telling of the story.

Detailed and forensic

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