Five years that shook the world : Gorbachev's unfinished revolution /

Both an evaluation of Gorbachev's first five years and an engaging reassessment of what Western analysts of Soviet affairs must do to understand the past and future of a transformed Soviet Union. Like Alexander Motyl's Sovietology, Rationality, Nationality (1990), this effort attempts to revive Sovietology for a new era and is remarkable for its introspection, frequent forthrightness, sense of mission, and breadth of coverage. The essays, surprisingly sympathetic to many of Gorbachev's difficulties, treat economic reform, demographic and environmental problems, nationality issues, the role of culture, and Soviet foreign policy, and draw underlying lessons for both Gorbachev and those who study the USSR. Jerry Hough's chapter on the urgent need for a reappraisal of Western approaches to understanding Soviet foreign policy is especially strong and provocative. One of the very few volumes by experts that is truly expert; it is difficult to see how any undergraduate class or graduate seminar could get by without it. Highly recommended.