Why read Stalin and the Scientists?

Book cover of Stalin and the Scientists: A History of Triumph and Tragedy, 1905-1953

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LONGLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION

War-torn, unstable and virtually bankrupt, revolutionary Russia tried to light its way to the future with the fitful glow of science. It succeeded through terror, folly and crime - but also through courage, imagination and even genius. Stalin believed that science should…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Stalin and the Scientists as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

John Mosier

Author

At nearly 500 pages, it's a tough read, but both the anecdotes and the capsule descriptions of the people make for fascinating reading.

On balance, Ings was probably tight to handle the topic this way and let the readers draw their own conclusions. I have two: although Marxism-Leninism claimed to be "scientific, the sconce basically consisted of eccentric ideas from the nineteenth century, and in key areas, Soviet scientists never got past that.

A conclusion that leads me to my second observation is that scientists are easy to control and will support whatever the political leadership says. Of course, Stalin's…

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