Rating: 
Summary: A thorough history, from what viewpoint?
Review: Dr. Pipes is one of the great scholars of Russia and the Soviet Union. He has written at length on the origin and events of the revolution that led to the founding of the USSR. Only someone with his deep knowledge of the material and his skill at writing could pull off such a brilliant telling of these important, and tragic, historical events in only 400 pages.The book is divided into three sections. The first is called "The Agony of the Old Regime" and provides a snapshot of the way Russia was governed and the lives of its citizens and peasants in 1900. It also discusses its experiments in constitutional government and the crisis of the First World War and the February Revolution. The second part is entitled "The Bolsheviks Conquer Russia" and tells us about Lenin, the October Coup, and the building of the terror state. Part three is called "Russia under the Bolshevik Regime" and discusses the Civil War, the building of the mechanisms to export communism and revolution to the rest of the world, the crisis of Lenin's stroke and the positioning for power by Stalin and then Lenin's death. The chapter on "Reflections on the Russian Revolution is very valuable. There is a list of suggested further readings and the book has many well-chosen pictures.
Rating: 
Summary: A masterful and concise volume
Review: Dr. Pipes is one of the great scholars of Russia and the Soviet Union. He has written at length on the origin and events of the revolution that led to the founding of the USSR. Only someone with his deep knowledge of the material and his skill at writing could pull off such a brilliant telling of these important, and tragic, historical events in only 400 pages. The book is divided into three sections. The first is called "The Agony of the Old Regime" and provides a snapshot of the way Russia was governed and the lives of its citizens and peasants in 1900. It also discusses its experiments in constitutional government and the crisis of the First World War and the February Revolution. The second part is entitled "The Bolsheviks Conquer Russia" and tells us about Lenin, the October Coup, and the building of the terror state. Part three is called "Russia under the Bolshevik Regime" and discusses the Civil War, the building of the mechanisms to export communism and revolution to the rest of the world, the crisis of Lenin's stroke and the positioning for power by Stalin and then Lenin's death. The chapter on "Reflections on the Russian Revolution is very valuable. There is a list of suggested further readings and the book has many well-chosen pictures.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent History of Bolshevik Revolution
Review: I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in finding out the real facts of the Russian Revolution. Despite what some of the other reviewers say, the facts simply speak for themselves and Pipes does not have to be "biased" to portray the Bolsheviks for the evil monsters that they really were. This book goes a long way in explaining how a small group of fanatics could take control of a large country such as Russia. It finally demolishes whatever "romance" that may still linger regarding the October 1917 "revolution". This is history at its finest!
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Introduction to the Topic
Review: I wanted to understand just how the 300 year reign of Tsarist Russia ended and transformed into the Communist regime that dominated that land for 70 years.
After looking at the books available on this topic, I chose A Richard Pipe's Concise History of the Russian Revolution to answer my questions. It proved to be an excellent choice.
Don't let the word Concise in the title fool you. It is not concise in that it is short or brief. All the details are here to present a well fleshed out picture of the tumultuous events of 1917.
The necessary background of Nicholas II and Alexandra is presented. The moves of Lenin and his supporting cast are provided in detail. One also learns that the foundations murderous regime of Stalin were all put into place and utilized by Lenin himself.
The book ends with Lenin's death, and provides a glimple into Stalin and how he came to succeed Lenin.
Pipe's work is a very worthwhile work. For reading only one book on this subject, I have yet to have come across one that would better replace it.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Book
Review: If you want to know about the Russian Revolution, but don't have time to read a huge tome, this is the book for you (hence the name). I really liked it and have read more about this time period as a result.
Rating:
Summary: Biased? Yes, but honestly and objectively so
Review: Objecting to Pipes's history of the Russain Revolution as biased misses the point. The author's approach to the issue is clear after reading the introductory chapter, in which he plainly states his thesis: the Russian Revolution was not a popular revolt owing to social and economic conditions, but a coup initiated by small cadre of intellectuals against a weak state. He also attacks the popular argument that Russian communism had an innocent phase before it was perverted by Stalin, arguing that the roots of totalitarianism were planted by Lenin. He repeatedly emphasizes these two main points throughout the book and summarizes his argument again at the end. Even if one believes that history can be told in purely objective fashion, a dubious position, one still cannot deny that by stating his thesis clearly Pipes satisfies the requirement of truth in advertising. Similar allegations of undue bias have been thrown at countless other works, notably A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn, a Marxist historian. Again, even if one disagrees with Zinn's characterization of U.S. history as a mere mosaic of repression, he states his intentions frankly. The objectivity that should be demanded of the historian is to not fabricate or distort evidence, and not to omit crucial facts merely because they are discomfiting to the argument. Optimally, the historian should also indicate his sources to allow further investigation (Pipes eschews footnotes in the concise version but I believe his full-length history has sufficient citations). Pipes is a credit to historiography by avoiding the delusion trappings of a "scientific" approach to his craft.
Rating: 
Summary: Another hat in the "biased" ring.
Review: Or perhaps "pointed" is a better word. At any rate it certainly is not presented as even a marginally disinterested history of the Russian Revolution. I should have paid a bit more attention to the back cover and introduction before the purchase where it hints at the authors point -- the Russian Revolution -- in fact the Marxist revolution -- was a failure and there's a good deal of context going into how and why the author believes this to be true. There are some wonderful tidbits along the way and the author's knowledge on the matter is not what's in question, but there are some portions that feel almost "smug" in the recounting of the events. Now the failure or success of the Marxist revolution is first not as simple of an issue as it is treated to be in this volume; it's simply not an addequate answer to such a prominant feature of the last century's history to say "Marxism failed; capitalism won". I would have preferred that the author would have showed a bit more restraint on airing his own take on this broader issue and simply stuck to, well, "a concise history of the Russian Revolution". Simply put -- if I had wanted to read an apology for the failure of communism with an emphasis on the Russian Revolution and history along the way this would have fit the bill. However if you're looking for something a bit "drier", I'd suggest to keep looking. I gave it two stars for upsetting my expectations.
Rating: 
Summary: Extremely Biased
Review: Pipes has written this account for one sole reason - certainly not to present a review or interpretation of the historry of the Bolshevik party and the Russian Revolution, but rather as an attempt to destroy Lenin and Bolshevism. While this one-sided attempt may be fine for some, it certainly does not help those readers who would actually like to make up their minds for themselves. But then again, can one possibly expect a right-wing historian who worked under the Reagan administration to give a fair account of the Russian Revolution? With that being said, Pipes is really no different then many leftist historians who attempt to glorify the USSR and the Revolution (Communist writers of the 30's and 40's come to mind). In my experience I have found that the book that carries the least biased account (of course, complete objectivity is impossible) of the Russian Revolution is E.H. Carr's History of the Bolshevik Revolution. If you are interested in the facts of the Revolution and not merely a book-long effort to demonize Lenin et al., then I suggest you pick up Carr's book.
Rating:
Summary: As Concise as Russian history can be
Review: Pipes' history book is a well formatted and interesting look at this period of Russian history. A great tool for professors that are trying to find something that will hold the attention of students without sacrificing the needed information in the Russian Revolutionary period. This period of Russian history (as with most periods) is full of many confusing names, complex patterns and social happenings. Pipes' look at the period keeps things concise and lets the fascination inherent in this topic shine through for itself. An excellent read for people interested in Russian history that are looking for something concrete but digestable.
Rating:
Summary: A fine, if slightly biased view on the Russian Revolution
Review: This book works as both an engrossing beginning to a serious study of Russia from around 1905 to the death of Lenin, or as a one-off read for those with a passing interest. A finely written history book, it manages to cram in a topical description of every major happening (and some not so major) during the aforementioned time frame as well as provide a solid foundation upon which to delve deeper into the subject matter. Pipes, a Harvard professor as well as an ex-National Security Advisor for Reagan on Soviet and Eastern European affairs (but don't let this fact dissuade you from reading the book) writes thought-provoking and informative prose with a well-tuned eye for context. The only turn-off is his constant reminders of just how awful the Bolsheviks were, finishing the book with a short diatribe supporting subjective reporting of history (which might be better wrestled with in a different book entirely). Regardless, a fine book, written by one of the world's top authorities of the subject matter
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