Reddit reviews Origins of the Great Purges (Cambridge Russian, Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies)
We found 3 Reddit comments about Origins of the Great Purges (Cambridge Russian, Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies). Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Used Book in Good Condition
The Road to Terror: Stalin and the Self-Destruction of the Bolsheviks, 1932-1939 (Annals of Communism Series) by J. Arch Getty, Oleg V. Naumov and Benjamin Sher and Origins of the Great Purges: The Soviet Communist Party Reconsidered, 1933-1938 (Cambridge Russian, Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies) by J. Arch Getty.
Purges began in 1919 after the revolution to get rid of people in the party who were drinks fakes or anything in between.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Origins-Great-Purges-Reconsidered-Post-Soviet/dp/0521335701
Very food revisionist history of the purges here, adds some context to the Great Purges by exploring how they began under Lenin
While I do not agree with all of Martens' assessments and believe that ultimately he falls too far into "Stalin did nothing wrong" camp, the work he does in this book is very good and Martens is meticulous about his sources. Keep a critical eye, but the information in there is solid and really does a wonderful job of challenging the prevailing view of Stalin in virtually every area.
I cannot fully endorse this book so far as I have not gotten around to reading the whole thing, but Getty is a solid historian and I trust his work.
Additionally, for actual information on how the Soviet penal system worked, I would recommend this analysis.
Happy reading, comrade!