National Jewish Book Awards WinnerIn 1894; Alfred Dreyfus; a Jewish officer in the French army; was wrongfully convicted of being a spy for Germany and was imprisoned on Devil's Island. Oxford historian Ruth Harris presents the scandal of the century in all its human complexity. Drawing on private letters and thousands of previously unconsidered sources; Harris offers a definitive account of the tragic drama that divided French society and stunned the world. Sweeping and engaging; Harris's retelling of the Dreyfus Affair extricates it from the myths of both the left and the right; offering a new understanding of one of the most significant episodes in modern history.
#671407 in Books Figes; Orlando 2008-11-25 2008-11-25Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.31 x 1.40 x 6.29l; 1.62 #File Name: 0312428030784 pages
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Essential to understand the social-psychological state of Russian society.By Paul V. KATCHALOVThis is an essential reading for every researcher; who is interested in true understanding of the nowadays Russia. I am astonished how the author; having been not born in Russia; succeeded to understand the "whispering" atmosphere of the two generations ago. All this "whispers" soon became shameful family secrets of the fear and subjugation; and thus are not at all easy to explain for the generation of now living young Russians. Though in mental afterwardness those repressed traumas are still well alive and acting.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. SoberingBy Jeffrey HuntingtonA homely history of the Soviet era from the point of view of the citizenry; from minor officials down to the educated peasants. A very large number of case studies; mostly centered on families and how they bore up or didn't under the paranoia; cruelty and seeming senselessness of the purges; trials; deportations; mass-starvations; denunciations; and executions. The general effect is horror; especially poignant when the victims believed the propaganda; worked for the success of the system; and were willing to make sacrifices to some good end.Many of the accounts are from Figes' own friends and relatives. The author is a serious historian; one of the best; and the tone is sober and objective. Not the most sensational or lurid history; but all the more depressing for its dryness.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. A very detailed look at life in the Soviet Union.By AlcapitanThis book is the culmination of a huge amount of research and scholarship in to the lives of Soviet citizens from the revolution through the Breshnev regime. The reading seemed a bit tedious at times; and the book is certainly not what you'd call entertaining. However it gives the most complete picture of individuals lives from the period coverd that I've ever read.If this is an area of interest to you (as it is to me); then it is worth the read.
