Book Review: Inside the Stalin Archives

The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 gave the bureaucrats of Russia’s archives fresh opportunities.  In the first few years of then President Yeltsin’s regime, Russia was allowed to open up their state and K.G.B archives and many journalists and publishers flocked to Moscow in search of secrets from the vaults.  One such person was the author, Jonathon Brent, who in January 1992 was the editorial director of Yale University Press.  The author flew to Russia in a bid to secure the rights to publish selected material from the Soviet archives for the Annals of Communism project of his press.

In “Inside the Stalin Archives: Discovering the New Russia”, Brent gives us an account of his experiences over the years, for example, meeting with archive directors and ex KGB agents and aging politicians.  The result of Brent’s labour is the twenty (20) volumes of Yales “Annals of Communism” series.  It is thus fair to say that unearthing such material was a difficult task for Brent.  In the text, he recalls tense negotiations over access, rights and payment.

Inside the Stalin Archives is a fascinating publication. Its fluidity of thought, subject, and theory works to its advantage. Brent comes off as educated and curious, but never overconfident, in his explanations. It is also apparent that he never allows an air of condescension to seep into his arguments.

While Inside the Stalin Archives is more discussion than dissertation, the text does make room for a few formal hypotheses. One of Brent’s most pertinent assertions concerns Russians’ attitude to the importance or otherwise of laws: “Many will argue that for Russia at this time stability is more important than laws, and there is some truth in this. But once the new Russia begins to go down a path of institutionalized lawlessness — and it is already fairly far along — it will not be possible to reform itself. Its past truly will overtake its future.”

The recommended retail price is $29.95. Scribe has, again, managed to bring an interesting and important book to the Australian market at a reasonable price.

Roly O’Regan

Footnotes

1. The website for Henry Rosenbloom’s independent Australian publishing house may be found at http://www.scribepublications.com.au/