{"product_id":"9780231207171","title":"The Shortest History of the Soviet Union","description":"\u003cp\u003e\"In 1917, Bolshevik revolutionaries came to power in the war-torn Russian Empire in a way that defied all predictions, including their own. Scarcely a lifespan later, in 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed as accidentally as it arose. The decades between witnessed drama on an epic scale-the chaos and hope of revolution, famines and purges, hard-won victory in history's most destructive war, and worldwide geopolitical conflict, all entwined around the dream of building a better society. This book is a livelyand authoritative distillation of this complex history, told with vivid details, a grand sweep, and wry wit. The acclaimed historian Sheila Fitzpatrick chronicles the Soviet Age-its rise, reign, and unexpected fall, as well as its afterlife in today's Russia. She underscores the many ironies of the Soviet experience: An ideology that claimed to offer humanity the reins of history wrangled with contingency. An avowedly internationalist and anti-imperialist state birthed an array of nationalisms. And a vision of transcending economic and social inequality and injustice gave rise to a country that was, in its way, surprisingly normal\"--\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Columbia Univ Pr","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49829039177976,"sku":"00000_00000_00000_00000","price":48.95,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0789\/8208\/6904\/files\/9780231207171-1.jpg?v=1783582347","url":"https:\/\/kinokuniya.com.au\/products\/9780231207171","provider":"Books Kinokuniya Australia","version":"1.0","type":"link"}