There Is No Freedom Without Bread!: 1989 and the Civil War That Brought Down Communism

by Constantine Pleshakov

Overview

The conventional story of the end of the Cold War is simple: Ronald Reagan waged an aggressive campaign against communism, outspent his opponent, and forced Mikhail Gorbachev to "tear down this wall."

In There Is No Freedom Without Bread!, Russian-born historian Constantine Pleshakov proposes a different interpretation. The revolutions that took place in 1989 were the result of politicking, tensions between Moscow and local governments, compromise between revolutionary leaders and communist old-timers, and the will and anger of the people. In a dramatic narrative culminating in that whirlwind year, Pleshakov challenges the received wisdom and argues that 1989 was as much about national civil wars and internal struggles for power as it was about the Eastern Europeans throwing off the yoke of Moscow.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312655334
Publisher:	Picador
Publication date:	09/28/2010
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Constantine Pleshakov is the author of several works of history, including Stalin’s Folly, The Tsar’s Last Armada, The Flight of the Romanovs, and Inside the Kremlin’s Cold War. He teaches at Mount Holyoke College and lives in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Table of Contents

Introduction 3

Part 1 1942-1979

1 War Brings License: 1942-48 11

2 Communism Rises: 1949-77 40

3 The Pope Arms 150 Divisions: 1978-79 76

Part 2 1980-1988

4 The Working Class Strikes: 1980-81 103

5 The Revolution Winters: 1982-88 124

Part 3 1989

6 The "Polish Disease" Spreads: June-September 163

7 The Wall Opens Up; the Magic Theater Raises the Curtain: October-November 185

8 Gorbachev Stumbles, Ceausescu Falls: December 208

Epilogue 231

Notes 239

Bibliography 265

Acknowledgments 273

Index 275

Editorial Reviews

Clear and beautifully lyrical . . . Of all the books that mark this anniversary, [There Is No Freedom Without Bread] is one that must be read. Pleshakov writes history with a human face.” —Gerard DeGroot, The Washington Post

“A savvier, richer take than the usual hymns to national liberation.” —Publishers Weekly

“Pleshakov embeds original perspectives into a lively narrative . . . The human factor comes out in this readable rendition of the end of communism.” —Gilbert Taylor, Booklist

From the Publisher