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Summary: Deserves All The Praise It Gets
Review: I was impressed with David Remnick's writing on Muhammed Ali, and as a lover of history and biography I thought I would give this book a try. I had no special interest in Soviet history but this book hooked me from its first chapter. Like all good history books it brings everything alive and gives you what seems like a complete understanding of the people and times. I can not recommend this book enough and I look forward to to reading it again!
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Summary: A gripping account of the fall of the Soviet empire
Review: In the Pulizer-Prize winner Lenin's Tomb, David Remnick offers the reader a trip through history that is at once frightening and enthralling. Beginning with the horrors orchestrated by Lenin and continuing through the rise of Yeltsin to power, Remnick intertwines political and social history with first-hand accounts which he gathered during his time in Russia during the 80s. The result is a work of unparalleled genius, taking hard facts and presenting them in a personal way that makes the reader feel as if he is actually experiencing them. The end result is a chilling dose of reality for those who have idealistic notions of the world in which we live. I highly recommend this work in which Remnick portrays the brutal realities of socialist life as well as the inevitable downfall of such a system.
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Summary: Incredibly done: the quintessencial Russia book
Review: It's hard to imagine there was any dissention from the Pulitzer committee over "Lenin's Tomb". This book excellently combines top-notch journalism and fine, precise, descriptive writing for an increbidly enjoyable and informative read. Considering how most such "good for you" books are long slogs about as exciting as bran, "Lenin's Tomb" was a surprising pleasure.I came to this book with minimal knowledge of Russia in general, let alone the Soviet transition, and disliking what I had encountered of Russia's culture and people. "Lenin's Tomb" manages to explain the basics to ignorant laypeople like myself without condescending or dragging through too much history. What you need to understand what was happening, Remnick provides, no more and no less. "Lenin's Tomb" proved an eye opener about the Soviet experience, but it also reflects on the larger ramifications of Communist autocracy. So many of the explorations of the Soviet erosion of society and culture gave me a sense of Deja Vu compared with China, only China has perhaps been less scathed by the shorter span of its bureaucratic red terror. Also, while "Lenin's Tomb" did not make me like Russia or Russians any more, it did present the context of how and why people can be a certain way, so that I now hold it against them less. "Lenin's Tomb" is almost novelesque in its readability, a page-turner and easily beach or plane fare. I doff my hat to Remnick's ability to carve dense political stuff into an involving, compelling narrative. Perhaps Russia scholars would find points to criticize, but from a journalistic perspective, "Lenin's Tomb" is the book all of us wish we could write.
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Summary: Eyewitness to History
Review: Lenin's Tomb by David Remnick chronicles the point at which the rot at the center of the Soviet system became more powerful than the Communist Party's iron fist. Remnick is a storyteller telling the story of a riveting period in history. As he writes, "To live anywhere between Bonn and Moscow in 1989 was to be witness to a year-long polical fantasy. You had the feeling you could run into history on the way to the bank or the seashore." Lucky for us, Remnick spent 1989 (as well as the years before and after) in Moscow.
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Summary: A pathology report that will break your heart
Review: Lenin's Tomb is an autopsy of sorts, performed by one present during the last death throes of the Soviet Union. There are ultimate causes of death (a non-functioning economy), as well as underlying factors (a history of repression, totalitarian rule) contributing to this body politic's demise. Imagine a coal mine with no elevator in the shafts so the miners have to walk 2 hours to get to their place in the mine where they can start working. The kicker: they don't get paid for travelling to and from their place in the mine. Imagine Soviet prisoners of war released after WW2, only to have Stalin send them to labor camps because he was afraid they had lived too long under foreign influence. There are stories of people who were part of the system yet tried as much as they could to follow their conscience so they could somehow bridge the chasm cleaving their souls in two. Remnick describes hardliners, people who genuinely long for the days of Stalin, and with a compassionate eye, tries to describe the world they have lived through and now find themselves orphans of sorts in the new order. I was amazed that so many lived and died so miserably for so long. Remnick's research, interviews and astonishing eye for detail makes the faceless numbers who lived through 70 odd years of the Soviet Union come alive and lets the reader share in their trials and their triumphs.
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Summary: Definitely deserved pulitzer!
Review: Like the Pulitzer winning book "The Guns of August," Remnick takes us to the action, and makes us feel like we are there with him. Even if you have no real interest in Russia or the Soviet Union, it is amazing how engrossing this work is...To make a topic you don't care about interesting is certainly an accomplishment. This book is a terrific read.
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Summary: Russia Revealed
Review: Now that we are a decade removed from the fall of the Soviet Empire, it is a wonderful to look back and read a fabulous primary source about the events. Remnick, the Moscow correspondant for The Washington Post, during the late 80's and early 90's (and since the editor of the New Yorker, which was a well deserved honor for a fabulous journalist, if I may say so myself) was right on the scene when the incredible collapse of Communism took place. He interviewed hundreds, if not thousands, of people who had lived through the Soviet regime and who played some role, regarldless of how small and seemingly insignificant, in the transformation of the nation, and this research paid huge dividends. He combines all these personal stories into one great book that explains and analyzes why and how this happened. It is very well written, and while being comprehensive remains comprehensible. It is a wonderful book and anyone who is interested in Russia (or would like to become so), likes history in general, or enjoys good semi-academic writing this book is for you.
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Summary: Truly amazing.
Review: Possibly one of the greatest books I have ever read. Captivating, heartfelt, intense, informative. I've read many texts on Russian history, and this is the definitive work. Honest and forthright, it captures every emotion, every aspect of the history of the Soviet Union. Anyone who has ever even thought about the Soviet Union should read this book. I've read it 5 times and I will read it again
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Summary: Simply Excellent
Review: Reading David Remnick's unmatched work, chronicalling the demise of the USSR, may well have been responsible for my decision to major in Soviet History. As a professional student of the Soviet Union, if I could recommend only one book on the USSR, of the dozens that I have now read, this would easily be me choice. It is as informative for the novice as it is challenging for the expert. If you have even the slightest interest in the demise of a world superpower and the twentieth century's most influential - and murderous - ideology, you simply must read this book.
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Summary: This is a great work.
Review: Remnick masterfully kills the Republican/Conservative myth that Ronald Reagan, "a triumph of the embalmer's art" in Gore Vidal's words, led the demise of the Soviet communist empire through buying ever too many useless weapons. By showing the implosion of a very cruel, very corrupt, poorly managed state, there can no longer be doubt about the reason for the demise of Lenin's dream. It's interesting to note that since capitalistic democracy has been introduced in Russia, living standards have actually dropped (in large part because of corruption and cronyism). I definitely want to read Remnick's follow-up, Resurrection, to learn more about this.
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