¥500

WW II's abrupt end brought us many gifts, none stranger than the papers of the German State. These were captured virtually complete, and to this day give up secrets. One that emerges from Alan Moorehead's research is the extent to which Germany was involved in the Russian Revolution. The ironic result of this clandestine maneuver was Germany's sure defeat on the Eastern front in WW II. "It all forms a fascinating chapter in the history of our century," states The Book-of-the-Month Club, "and the man ignorant of how that chapter unrolled is minus the keys to an understanding of his own time and so in part himself--Moorehead hands us that key."

I'm an avid fiction reader, but I tend to read non-fiction with the attitude that it's good for me, but not exactly enjoyable. This book is the absolute exception. It is well-researched and invaluable in helping to understand the background of the revolution and how that revolution sowed the seeds to what followed. It's also the only history book in which I have ever marked passages simply for the poetics of the writing.

"For the first few days many of the demonstrators did not know where they were going to go or what they were supposed to do: they simply wanted to protest. But then, as more and more men poured into the streets, the crowds took confidence from their own numbers and they found with astonishment and exhilaration how very much they were not alone: not just a reckless few, but a host of comrades in a fighting mood. And so they accepted the leaders who appeared, and they went along, and in the absence of personal enemies they attacked symbols."

Read this book, if for nothing other than the description of Rasputin's assasination. Unbelievable.