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The Gulag Archipelago, 1918-1956: An Experiment in Literary Investigation (Volume One): 001 by [Solzhenitsyn, Aleksandr I.]

The Gulag Archipelago, 1918-1956: An Experiment in Literary Investigation (Volume One): 001 Kindle Edition

by Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn (Author)

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The Gulag Archipelago is Solzhenitsyn’s attempt to compile a literary-historical record of the vast system of prisons and labor camps that came into being shortly after the Bolsheviks seized power in Russia in 1917 and that underwent an enormous expansion during the rule of Stalin from 1924 to 1953. Various sections of the three volumes describe the arrest, interrogation, conviction, transportation, and imprisonment of the Gulag’s victims by Soviet authorities over four decades. The work mingles historical exposition and Solzhenitsyn’s own autobiographical accounts with the voluminous personal testimony of other inmates that he collected and committed to memory during his imprisonment.Upon publication of the first volume of The Gulag Archipelago, Solzhenitsyn was immediately attacked in the Soviet press. Despite the intense interest in his fate that was shown in the West, he was arrested and charged with treason on February 12, 1974, and was exiled from the Soviet Union the following day.

Length: 672 pages

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Product details

File Size: 6788 KB
Print Length: 672 pages
Publisher: Basic Books (January 30, 1997)
Publication Date: January 30, 1997
Language: English
ASIN: B001RNNRF4
Text-to-Speech: Enabled

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Word Wise: Not Enabled
Lending: Not Enabled
Enhanced Typesetting: Not Enabled

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,327,884 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #377 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > History > Russia & Former Soviet Republics > Former Soviet Republics
- #819 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Politics & Social Sciences > Crime & Criminals > Penology
- #10725 in Books > History > Asia > Russia

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Customer Reviews

364

4.5 out of 5 stars

5 star		69%
4 star		14%
3 star		5%
2 star		5%
1 star		7%

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Top Customer Reviews

Be SURE to get the hardcover version because the paperback does not include the author's notes

ByRdgJr near NYCon April 30, 2016

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

The hardcover version includes, at the bottom of many pages, the author's notes. These notes should be considered an essential part of the book. They are interesting and designed to enhance and embellish the text. Do not purchase the paperback version, because it does not include those essential notes by the author.

Obviously, this book (in hardcover form with the notes) is essential reading-- everyone who is able should invest the time to absorb this important, very moving, stereotype-shattering, great/classic work of non-fiction. According to Wikipedia, since 2009 this book (in Russian) has been required reading by Russian high school students (in Russia).

11 comment 43 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

One of the greatest tragedies in the history of mankind

ByWalrus 305on February 28, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

One of the greatest tragedies in the history of mankind, period. The Soviets outdid Hitler and imprisoned and killed around 14 million of their own people. It's mind boggling! And it's true. Sadly, it's still happening, on a much smaller scale, but this system is still in use to this day. Solzhenitsyn has done a wonderful job of collecting numerous prisoner accounts and turning them into a very readable series of literature, despite the danger it brought to him and those close to him. He will always be a hero of mankind, in my eyes.

0Comment 16 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

I highly appreciate the narratives and analyses of the great Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

ByMinh Hai Doon October 6, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

As a field administrator of the Republic of Viet nam prior to 1975 with 10 years in the Communist reeducation centers in North Viet nam, I highly appreciate the narratives and analyses of the great Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. By perusing this book, I acquire the useful comparative views that lead to the final and basic policy of the communists around the world.

Minh H. Do

0Comment 13 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Chiling

ByPrometheus Ion April 18, 2014

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I am only to about page 60 so far. The writing style is captivating. To some extent, it has been a series of references about how certain people or groups of people were arrested and/or executed. All too easy how people disappeared without a trace and no one even missed them and couldn't do anything if they wanted to. And the petty, heartless, political and bureaucratic reasons people were arrested makes one closely reconsider his day-to-day activities.

Chilling, as you can see the roots of this activity growing in our country daily.

It will take a while to finish all 3 volumes, but I plan on gradually finishing. It's hard to read too much at once as your jaw gets tired of dropping constantly and your brain can only take so much astonishment at once.

0Comment 5 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Devastating

Bydankrecklowon May 7, 2012

Format: Mass Market PaperbackVerified Purchase

I made a large order of books including this one. I have wanted to read it for a long time and chose it as the first book to tackle. Big Mistake! It is riveting history . . . but after the first couple days I can only handle a few pages at a time. It is devastating in its account of brutal inhumanity and Solzhenitsyn's surprising introspection. It is also disturbing that one can see some of these same patterns emerging in various aspects today across the globe.

While none of my comments might suggest a glowing review, I really intend for them to be. If this isn't essential reading for every person interested in either history or in humankind's destiny I don't know what is.

Get it! Read it!

0Comment 32 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Shorter Version of a Genius' Work

ByJackie Eon March 30, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

The Gulag Archipelago should always be five stars. There were a few things that I wanted that were not included, but that's always the case with abridgements. If you haven't read anything by Solzhenitsyn, this is the place to start if you want nonfiction. It's approachable, not too long, and retains the unique nature of the "Archipelago." The inclusion of the Nobel acceptance at the end was a nice touch as well. You might even find yourself inspired to read the unabridged version. For a man who did not have access to primary documents, he did a fantastic job putting together the facts, but this book really isn't about numbers and statistics. If you want a more 'historical' version, you might try Applebaum's "Gulag: A History," but this book is more about the human condition. We can learn a lot about ourselves as human beings and what we are capable of from Solzhenitsyn.

0Comment 10 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Heavy Subject Reading

ByMusenon August 30, 2010

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

This is the third volume of the Gulag Archipelago trilogy written by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, after his internment in the Soviet prison system. The first book contains Parts I & II, the second book contains Parts III & IV, this third book contains Parts V, VI, & VII. His work was beginning to be translated from Russian into English as early as a 1972/74 publishing of the first Book; which he considered "An experiment in Literary Investigation" All three volumes are very serious, heavy reading- and I read in slow increments, as the content is very disturbing. It touches on many subjects, with a baseline goal of just normal human survival in extremely harsh conditions. Whatever Solzhenitsyn's crime may have been that warranted imprisonment for over a decade in the new Soviet Russia, he has redeemed himself and all other "innocents" also felled to the system in this comprehensive work. He writes factually, with dry humour, and a somewhat compliant attitude. He does not seem resentful, though he should be, for the lifetime stolen from him. Solzhenitsyn was expelled from the Soviet Union in 1974, and went to Zurich with his family. He has visited the United States and Canada, and gone on to write more cultural literature based on Soviet Russian themes such as: 'One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich' and 'The First Circle' among others.
I personally have only recently been introduced to Solzhenitsyn's work, and currently laboring through the second volume only of Gulag Archipelago.