The Lost Khrushchev

The Lost Khrushchev: A Journey into the Gulag of the Russian Mind tells the story of Leonid Khrushchev, the author's grandfather, and the oldest son of former Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev. Part political memoir, part historical investigation, this family chronicle is a window into Leonid's life and death and what that means in contemporary Russia. Khrushcheva's search began thirty years ago after a chance conversation with Vyacheslav Molotov, Joseph Stalin's all-powerful foreign...
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The Lost Khrushchev: A Journey into the Gulag of the Russian Mind tells the story of Leonid Khrushchev, the author's grandfather, and the oldest son of former Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev. Part political memoir, part historical investigation, this family chronicle is a window into Leonid's life and death and what that means in contemporary Russia. Khrushcheva's search began thirty years ago after a chance conversation with Vyacheslav Molotov, Joseph Stalin's all-powerful foreign minister. What inspired the author to finally document the Khrushchev family's past was a persistent accusation in Russian media that twenty-five-year-old Leonid--a fighter pilot during World War II--did not die in battle in 1943 as was once presumed, but instead was executed by Stalin for his alleged desertion and service to the Nazis. So what happened to that lost Khrushchev? Khrushcheva also addresses the legacy of her great grandfather, Nikita Khrushchev, whose leadership from 1953 to 1964 has much bearing on Russian politics today."A fascinating read, part detective story, part family history, and all relevant to politics in Russia today."--Jack F. Matlock, Jr., US Ambassador to the Soviet Union 1987-1991, author of Autopsy on an Empire and Reagan and Gorbachev."This is a wonderful book, beautifully written and very moving. It does a great service to Russia and the enduring legacy of the Khrushchev family. Russia's often-tragic history, great bravery, enormous human strengths (and weaknesses) and unique culture all shine in 'The Lost Khrushchev."--Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, Director, Earth Institute at Columbia University, author of "To Move the World: JFK's Quest for Peace.""In demolishing the Putin-era slander that her fighter pilot grandfather, Leonid Khrushchev, killed in action in 1943, had been a Nazi spy, Nina Khrushcheva offers not just an understanding portrait of a rebellious young tearaway turned hero but a profound glimpse into the "gulag of the Russian mind," in which a permanent disposition to despotism and paranoia coexists with fleeting efforts at freedom and truth,"--Lord Robert Skidelsky."Nina Khrushcheva's deeply personal and fascinating book takes us into the bosom of what was, half a century ago, the First Family of the USSR. The story she tells has elements of tragedy, courage, and intrigue. It adds fresh information and a new human dimension to a crucial prelude to the eventual collapse of the Soviet dictatorship: Khrushchev's reforms and, when he was a pensioner and nonperson his successors' effort, ultimately unsuccessful, to besmirch his legacy."--Strobe Talbott, President, the Brookings Institution, editor and translator of Khrushchev's memoirs.