‘Kathy Harriman’s wartime letters provide a behind-the-curtains peek at some of the greatest moments of the Second World War. This skilfully edited volume is both deliciously entertaining and endlessly informative.
A pure joy to read.’
GILES MILTON
“Geoffrey Roberts offers a fascinating portrayal of a bright, sharp and charming young woman coming of age at the forefront of history. Through Kathleen Harriman’s sparkling commentary framed by Roberts’ keen editorial pen, we see the human side of the war’s most consequential days in London and Moscow as shaped by the giants of the era – with whom Miss Harriman could more than hold her own!’
CATHERINE GRACE KATZ
“Fascinating”- Wall Street Journal
“Convincing” – Financial Times
“Pioneering” – New Statesman
“Engagingly written” – Times Literary Supplement
“A must read” – Morning Star
“An important resource for studying one of the most important facets of Second World War diplomacy, and conveys the abiding message that national leaders can transcend their differences to work towards a common goal”
Jonathan Colman
“Churchill and Stalin provides an intriguing and detailed insight into how two of the 20th century’s leading figures presented their cases to each other and negotiated their positions. Accounts of their face-to-face meetings are fascinating.”
Taylor Downing, Military History Magazine
“The definitive documentary on the relationship of Churchill and Stalin during WWII, produced by a team of three co-authors combining their specialist skills. The alliance between the Soviets and the Western Allies was a case of ‘my enemy’s enemy’. – Highly Recommended.
Firetrench
“An absolutely spellbinding read.”
George Galloway
“Stalin was a lifelong reader of astonishing stamina and range. In this shrewd and compelling exploration, Geoffrey Roberts finds the key to understanding the despot and his despotism hidden in plain sight in the pages of his books. The love of reading drew Stalin to the revolution and gave him the intellectual assurance that all his ruthless violence was both necessary and justified. Stalin’s Library offers a new and fascinating depth of insight into the mind of a fanatic.”
Rachel Polonsky, author of Molotov’s Magic Lantern
“Innovative and intriguing: the warlord and mass-murderer as bookworm, librarian and intellectual. A fascinating read.”
David Reynolds, co-author of The Kremlin Letters: Stalin’s Wartime Correspondence with Churchill and Roosevelt
“A German philosopher once said, “Tell me how you read and I’ll tell you who you are.” Geoffrey Roberts’s study of the remains of Stalin’s library, and the angry exclamations and demanding queries made by the tyrant’s blue pencil in the margins (and sometimes whole rewritten pages) reveals Stalin as a fanatical proof-reader, a phenomenally gifted interrogator of other persons’ opinions.”
Donald Rayfield, author of Stalin and His Hangmen
“This fascinating, original, and meticulously researched study of Stalin’s library offers penetrating insight into the mind of a dictator who valued ideas as much as power. In exploring Stalin as an avid reader of books, Roberts punctures many myths about the man.”
Stephen Smith, author of Russia in Revolution
“This book of new essays is dedicated to Geoffrey Roberts, a notable Soviet specialist…Most of the contributors acknowledge their debt to Roberts, illuminating the importance of Roberts’s work in influencing their own research and the book is a fine tribute to his career and influence..This new collection has as its objective a revisioning of both Stalin as leader and of Stalinism as a political force…This collection adds much to the historical scholarship surrounding Stalin his era and his politics and also contains a good supply of material that will be used to stimulate debate and inspire further research.”
Craig Gerrard, History: The Journal of the Historical Association
“Roberts, who has studied and written on the Soviet experience in World War II for decades, shows his comfort with the material in his absolute control over a complex narrative..This is a fine biography, wrapped well into the broader context of Zhukov’s war and the Soviet system he served so loyally.. A readable, sound, balanced portrait of a fascinating man operating on a vast scale.”
Stephen Randolph, Washington Independent Review of Books
“The most comprehensive biography of Zhukov available in English, which chronicles not only the marshall’s well-known military feats but also, and very importantly, the military and political intrigues and infighting that went on behind the scenes.”
“This book is an example of high quality biography. It is meticulously researched and objective in its judgments. It is an important contribution to understanding the Soviet psychology as well as the history of the Second World War.”
“Geoffrey Roberts offers the reader a classic grand narrative of World War II…and the inception of the Cold War from a Soviet perspective….he has a masterly command of his material and with Stalin’s Wars has given us a passionately argued and meticulously researched account of Stalin as war leader which is compelling reading and has justly been hailed as the most up to date and comprehensive on the subject.”
Judith Devlin, Dublin Review of Books
“Stalin’s Wars by Geoffrey Roberts…is in many respects a model of scholarship. It draws on an impressive array of Russian, British and American archives…It is impeccably organised. The author writes with clarity and authority. He advances a sharply defined and well-supported argument about an important topic, challenging the conventional wisdom and offering a thoroughly substantiated alternative. His canvas is large, but his brushstrokes are precise and vigorous. Stalin’s Wars is revisionism of high order.”
Andrew J, Bacevich, The National Interest
“Stalin’s Wars is an astonishing defence of the Soviet dictator…will provoke lively debate and is a must-read for anyone interested in Stalin and his times.”
BBC History Magazine