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The Soviet Sixties

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The Soviet Sixties

By: Robert Hornsby
Narrated by: Peter Noble
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About this listen

The story of a remarkable era of reform, controversy, optimism, and Cold War confrontation in the Soviet Union

Beginning with the death of Stalin in 1953, the "sixties" era in the Soviet Union was just as vibrant and transformative as in the West. The ideological romanticism of the revolutionary years was revived, with renewed emphasis on egalitarianism, equality, and the building of a communist utopia. Mass terror was reined in, great victories were won in the space race, Stalinist cultural dogmas were challenged, and young people danced to jazz and rock and roll.

Robert Hornsby examines this remarkable and surprising period, showing that, even as living standards rose, aspects of earlier days endured. Censorship and policing remained tight, and massacres during protests in Tbilisi and Novocherkassk, alongside invasions of Hungary and Czechoslovakia, showed the limits of reform. The rivalry with the United States reached perhaps its most volatile point, friendship with China turned to bitter enmity, and global decolonization opened up new horizons for the USSR in the developing world. These tumultuous years transformed the lives of Soviet citizens and helped reshape the wider world.

©2023 Robert Hornsby (P)2023 Tantor 20th Century Modern Russia Soviet Union Stalin Imperialism War Socialism China Cold War

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Most relevant
This was on my wish list for ages and then finally listened - thank God I did. It's a brilliant book, perfectly narrated as always by Peter Noble. There are so many brilliant books on the Soviet Union the Revolution, the Civil War, on Stalin and WW2 and on its collapse so this book compliments these great books by telling a history largely ignored. It is beautifully well-written too.

On my wish list for ages and then finally lisented

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