| Book Review | The American Historical Review, 112.4

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| Book Review | The American Historical Review, 112.4 | The History Cooperative

Book Review

Europe: Early Modern and Modern

Ludmila Stern. Western Intellectuals and the Soviet Union, 1920–40: From Red Square to the Left Bank. (BASEES/Routledge Series on Russian and East European Studies.) New York: Routledge. 2007. Pp. 269. $127.78.

It is no secret that a large number of distinguished Western intellectuals used to admire the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin, but far less is known about the specific Soviet policies and organizations designed to nurture these attitudes. One major tool was the meticulously designed conducted tour. It is the major objective of Ludmila Stern's original and well-researched study to establish and document precisely the Soviet contribution to the persuasion of Western intellectuals. The resulting picture is not flattering: official treatment combined with their subjects' favorable predisposition yielded the results the hosts sought: "[T]hese privileges made visitors close their eyes to many of the deficiencies of the system... Many of them were misled by their own vanity, believing the totally implausible assertions about their loyal readers and admirers in the Soviet Union and their own importance. They were seduced by luxuries, free meals and banquets, holidays and royalties and ... flattered by the attention of the powerful" (pp. 35, 206).

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