Marx /

Nearly two decades after the demise of Soviet communism, it is clear that Marx has not been forgotten. Indeed, a lively interest in his life and work persists, and Barnett's intellectual biography is only the latest in a long line of works devoted to this controversial 19th-century thinker. Francis Wheen's popular biography (Karl Marx: A Life, CH, Oct'00, 38-1262) and James White's intellectual history (Karl Marx and the Intellectual Origins of Dialectical Materialism, CH, Apr'97, 34-4419) have most recently, from somewhat different angles, brought Marx alive for a new generation of readers. How does Barnett's intellectual biography fit into this mix? His focus is less on the man and more on the work itself. This is really a history of Marx's writings, both those published during his lifetime and those that appeared much later. Rather than seeking to distill the overarching themes that shaped the corpus, Barnett treats the publications individually rather than as a whole. His discussions of relatively unfamiliar works and of the editorial changes that occurred in subsequent editions of the famous ones are welcome contributions. Despite a sometimes plodding presentation and a lack of attention to Marx's intellectual legacy, this book serves as a solid complement to the existing literature. Summing Up: Recommended. All levels/libraries. P. Kivisto Augustana College (IL)