Award-winning author China Miéville plunges us into the year the world was turned upside downOn
the centenary of the Russian Revolution China Miéville tells the extraordinary story of this
pivotal moment in history.In February of 1917 Russia was a backwards autocratic monarchy
mired in an unpopular war by October after not one but two revolutions it had become the
world's first workers' state straining to be at the vanguard of global revolution. How did
this unimaginable transformation take place?In a panoramic sweep stretching from St Petersburg
and Moscow to the remotest villages of a sprawling empire Miéville uncovers the catastrophes
intrigues and inspirations of 1917 in all their passion drama and strangeness. Intervening in
long-standing historical debates but told with the reader new to the topic especially in mind
here is a breathtaking story of humanity at its greatest and most desperate of a turning point
for civilisation that still resonates loudlytoday.
