The Russian Revolution: History in an Hour

By: Rupert Colley

Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble

Love history? Know your stuff with History in an Hour.

In 1917 the world changed forever. One of the most influential and contentious events in recent history, the Russian Revolution unleashed the greatest political experiment ever conducted, one which continues to influence both Eastern and Western politics today.

The Russian Revolution: History in an Hour neatly covers all the major facts and events giving you a clear and straightforward overview: from the circumstances behind the rise of Lenin and the Bolsheviks, to the consequences of their struggle for a new socialist utopia. The Russian Revolution: History in an Hour is engagingly written and accessible for all history lovers.

©2012 Rupert Colley (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic reviews

‘If the past is a foreign country, History in an Hour is like a high-class tour operator, offering delightfully enjoyable short breaks in the rich and diverse continent of our shared past’ Dominic Sandbrook

‘The practice of History is ever-evolving, and the History In An Hour idea brings it back up to date for the digital age’ Andrew Roberts, Bookseller

‘This is genius’ MacWorld.com

Tough to follow at times.

It's a little hard to follow, it jumps in dates and years. it does have interesting information.

Great quick overview

Great way to get familiar with basics of Russian Revolution. A lot of important points and good flow of events.

Engrossing & succinct!

This is my first experience with the History in an Hour Series. I didn't have high expectations, honestly. I think it was due to its length and price (shallow, I know) but it was perfect. It introduced me to many events and people of interest. I'm really looking forward to listening to more books in this series as well as diving deeper into this topic.

The narrator really adds to this book. His delivery is impeccable and really keeps you engrossed.

I found what I wanted.

I have much to thank Rupert Colley and ‘History in an Hour’ for improving my awareness of History. As the other books, this one too was just right. It gave me a fair amount of idea of the times and conditions that lead to the Russian revolution and the ifs & buts of the time make it an exciting read. Lenin, Trotsky and Stalin’s characters are briefly explained too. In one hour, I couldn’t have asked for more.

Awesome history lessons

Why did my college professors not teach history with such an interesting presentation? Maybe they should listen to these history lessons themselves. I totally recommend this to everyone.

It was the perfect length for an overview

After listening to this at work I feel like I have a pretty good - albeit general grasp of what went on during the Russian Revolution.

Must read

I had no idea what to expect when I downloaded this book, good or bad. This was a very satisfying read : tightly-packed information, yet very clearly written and narrated. I enjoyed the fact that there is a good amount of info on the years leading to the Revolution giving me a good feel for the social and political background. There are not many superfluous details or anecdotes, as one might expect from an 80 minute-short review of a historical event that spanned over almost a year. Overall a must read for people who, like me, are looking for an introduction on the subject : short, informative, to the point, and paints a good overall picture and, in my case, has triggered the need to read more on the topic.

Only negative point : the narrator's pronunciation of Russian names was sloppy to the point where it was hard to understand what was being said.

Concise and very informative

There was so much I did not know about the Russian Revolution; never knew that Lenin was such a villain, for example.
As has been my experience with the "history in an hour" series, this book is excellent. The informative, non-exhausting content, and the outstanding narration make this a very pleasurable experience.

Russian History in a Flash!

These History in an Hour books are great for changing a dull commute into a very informative history lesson. The Russian Revolution people and events come alive in this retelling. The narration is superb!

exactly as described

its a good summary of the information. its good to either use as a primer to a much deeper dive. Or as brief flyover of the Soviet uprising and take over.