Between Stalin and Hitler: Class War and Race War on the Dvina, 1940-46 (BASEES/Routledge Series on Russian and East European Studies) [Hardcover]

Geoffrey Swain (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0415331935 | ISBN-13: 978-0415331937 | Publication Date: October 28, 2004

Covering the horrors that took place in Latvia from the beginning of the Second World War until 1947, this book focuses on the heart of the 20th century: Stalinist industrialization, collectivization and political annihilation; Nazi expansionism and genocide; with local nationalism, local nationalist rivalries, and local anti-Semitism. The author traces the developments in one particular region of Latvia, Daugavpils. There, the dilemma of Hitler or Stalin, the ideological struggle of fascism or communism was more acute than anywhere else in Europe since the population was actively involved in establishing both.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'This book asks the difficult question about the link of political polarization and ethnic conflict and therefore makes an important contribution to the research about the second World War.' - Osteuropa

About the Author

A graduate of the University of Sussex, Geoffrey Swain studied for his PhD at the London School of Economics under the guidance of Professor Leonard Schapiro.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Routledge (October 28, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415331935
• ISBN-13: 978-0415331937
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,360,190 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A good summary of hell in a small place, December 9, 2010

By 

R. L. Huff "An old reader" (Louisiana) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Between Stalin and Hitler: Class War and Race War on the Dvina, 1940-46 (Basees/Routledge Series on Russian and East European Studies) (Paperback)

Hell had a home on earth, and that was Latvia in the 1940s, probably the most crimson patch in the so-called "bloodlands" between Hitler and Stalin. Rather than just a moralistic expose of "totalitarian crimes," the author has done a meticulous job of social analysis, delineating who supported which invader and why. Ironically the local nationalists were more blood-thirsty than the Nazis, who drew back at the excesses of their erstwhile collaborators. Focusing on the mixed ethnic/religious region of Latgalia, the reader must sometimes close his eyes at the kaleidoscope of ethnic politics and class interest than swirled in this tight corner. How dizzying it must also have looked to its would-be conquerors, hoping to exploit its class and ethnic antagonisms only to be turned and hamstrung by them. Essential reading for anyone seeking in-depth understanding of the time and place, without the sweeping generalizations of Timothy Snyder's "Bloodlands."