Excellent history of Russian upheaval by the author of 900 Days. Very broad in scope, covering the political events, the agonies of the Russian people, and biographies of two most major players - Lenin, the frenetic and intense revolutionary, and Nicholas II, who is wholly oblivious. Excellent work - I'm surprised it isn't more widely read. ( )

1807 Black Night, White Snow: Russia's Revolutions 1905-1917, by Harrison E. Salisbury (read 10 Nov 1983) This book purports to cover merely the years referred to in its subtitle, but it actually begins with the execution of Lenin's brother in 1887 and ends with the massacre of the Czar and his family on July 16-17, 1918. I found the book fascinating. While I have read much on the events covered, it all seemed fresh and it was supremely interesting. Salisbury is rougher on the Czar than was Massie in his biography Nicholas and Alexandra, but Salisbury is also factual about Lenin and the Bolsheviks. This book, though written by a journalist, is serious history and is heavily footnoted to Russian works. It shows how far Lenin departed from the upbringing he had: "But one thing was certain from the beginning--Lenin's remorseless course had carried him far from the clean, simple, and noble morality of the family in which he grew up and which had produced his martyred brother, Alexander, and his dedicated sisters. The young Lenin, formed by the stern and puritanical views of his saintly mother, had now come full circle. Lenin had committed the final act for which his brother had been willing openly to give his life. But Lenin in sanctioning the murder of Nicholas was only willing to admit ex post facto approval." ( )