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The Dark Side of the Earth
How the Soviet Union Collapsed but Remained
Brief Description
'TEN, NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN . . .' On April 12, 1961, the Soviet Union begins its countdown. From the steppes of Kazakhstan, the first human — Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin — launches into space. In that moment, another countdown begins. How could it be that a...
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The Dark Side of the Earth
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A monumental new narrative of the collapse of the USSR, drawing on an unprecedented range of interviews with key players, showing how the great forces of history worked through individual lives to condemn Russia to its present fate
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Description
'TEN, NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN . . .' On April 12, 1961, the Soviet Union begins its countdown. From the steppes of Kazakhstan, the first human — Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin — launches into space.
In that moment, another countdown begins. How could it be that a single generation — just three decades — would separate the USSR's crowning achievement from the collapse of the Soviet empire?
More than a history lesson, The Dark Side of the Earth is a testament to the enduring fight for truth and freedom. In pursuit of the real story, renowned Kremlin opponent Mikhail Zygar ('one of Russia's smartest and best-sourced young journalists' — New York Times) gathered witness statements of jaw-dropping candour from hundreds of key players: the last first secretaries and first presidents of the post-Soviet republics, the leaders of independence movements, Western politicians and diplomats, and Mikhail Gorbachev himself, not to mention dozens of scientists, authors, film directors, aspiring rockstars, and ordinary men and women who for a time became the accidental protagonists of history.
The end of the USSR set the stage for today's vengeful return. But as Gagarin looked down from the stars at his home world, was Russia's fate already written?
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781398714038
Publisher: Orion Publishing Co
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 11 November 2025
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Audience: Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly
DIMENSIONS
Width: 153.0mm
Height: 234.0mm
Weight: 250g
Pages: 448
About the Author
Mikhail Zygar is a journalist and the founding editor-in-chief of TV Rain, which was Russia's last independent news channel. His books include War and Punishment (2023), a defence of Ukrainian sovereighty, and All the Kremlin's Men (2017), a critical portrait of Putin's inner circle that was a number-one bestseller in Russia for several months. In 2024, a Moscow court convicted him for his critical reporting and sentenced him to eight and a half years in prison. He now lives in exile.
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