The Soviet Union: A Very Short Introduction

• Takes a refreshing thematic approach to the history of the Soviet Union - exploring its social, historical, political, and cultural impact
• Characterises the workings of Soviet society and its political system through from 1917-1991
• Emphasies the contradictions and paradoxes of this large and complex state
• Provides an up-to-date consideration of the Soviet Unions's impact and what we have learnt since its end

Readership: General readers interested in the Soviet Union and undergraduates in History, Russian Politics and European History

Stephen Lovell, Reader in Modern European History at King's College London

1: Future and past
2: Coercion and participation
3: Poverty and wealth
4: Elite and masses
5: Patriotism and multinationalism
6: West and East
Conclusion