Stalin, A Biography in Facts

Stalin is usually presented as the quintessential "vicious dictator," an iconic figure of tyranny. But almost none of his many biographers has drawn on primary sources, eye witness accounts, Stalin’s own writings and speeches, or what those people who met him had to say about him. This book, an attempt to get a little closer to the truth, is based on first-hand observations from every stage of his life.

The author cites well-known “court historians” such as Strobe Talbott, but also German author Lion Feuchtwanger -- who witnessed the Second Moscow Trial and studied all the case files, and K. Voroshilov -- who shows that Trotsky lied in taking credit for creating the First Mounted Army that was instrumental in winning the civil war. 

Many other authorities cited here are simply too inconvenient for today’s career historians to consider. But precisely when examining the record of controversial figures such as Stalin and Lenin, responsible researchers seek objective information and avoid allowing their understanding to be colored by prejudice and superficial opinions spread in the Western media and education systems. 

Researching Stalin, his upbringing, his character, and his deeds, it becomes clear that there is an enormous disparity between the factual record and the despicable portrait we have been given. The author finds that socialism did exist in the Soviet Union under Lenin and Stalin, but later it was sabotaged, undermined and brought down by people like Khrushchev, Kosygin and Gorbachev.