Book Review: Communism: A History
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Communism: A History, by Richard Pipes. New York: Modern Library, 2001.
Not everyone can sum up the combined histories of the Cold War, Leninist and Stalinist Russia, and Marxist ideology in less than two hundred pages, but the illustrious Harvard historian Richard Pipes does this with surprising skill. Pipes explains the origins of communism as an idea, provides biographical sketches of key figures, and offers up substantive commentary on subjects like the degree to which the Soviets and Nazis were allied and the overthrow of Salvador Allende in 1973. He argues Stalin was a product of the system, not an accident, and concludes that “the overwhelming responsibility for the Cold War lay with Moscow.” In fascinating extended discussions, Pipes examines the role of Communism in terrorism and the Third World and visits the crimes of Pol Pot in Cambodia, Mengistu Haile Mariam in Ethipoia, and Mao in China. He also strikes at the foundations of Communism, critiquing it on theoretical grounds. Professor Pipes’ reading recommendations at the end of his book make it a particularly instructive read.
