In this challenging reinterpretation of the Soviet Bolsheviks' policies toward the peasantry in the pre-WWII period, Andrea Graziosi posits war as the most effective paradigm for understanding the struggle between the peasantry and the Soviet authorities, and shows how this struggle was one of the most important factors in the formation of Soviet rule in Russia, Ukraine, and the other republics of the USSR. His conclusions are startling and will necessitate a re-evaluation of the formative years of the Soviet Union. This volume will be of interest to specialists and general readers alike.

Andrea Graziosi is a Professor of Contemporary History at the Università di Napoli "Federico II."

Read More by Andrea Graziosi:

• Hunger by Design: The Great Ukrainian Famine and Its Soviet Context