Stalin's Daughter: The Extraordinary and Tumultuous Life of Svetlana Alliluyeva
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Stalin's Daughter: The Extraordinary and Tumultuous Life of Svetlana Alliluyeva
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Narrated by:
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Karen Cass
About this listen
Who was Svetlana Alliluyeva?
A little girl, her father’s only daughter, his “little sparrow”; instructed to bury her secrets in her heart by her mother, who shot herself soon after.
An observer as her relatives were mercilessly killed and her first love exiled.
A woman who tore through relationships with men, joined and abandoned various religions, and became the most famous defector to the United States.
The victim of an inescapable truth: “You are Stalin’s daughter. . . . You can’t live your own life. You can’t live any life. You exist only in reference to a name.”
©2015 Rosemary Sullivan (P)2015 HarperCollins Publishers LtdListeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
‘A tremendously exciting and stimulating biography … Never have I read a biography that reminded my more of a picaresque novel, with its heroine bouncing like a pinball from one location to another, from one bizarre situation to another … Her life may have been a mess, but this masterful biography shows that it was her mess, and a magnificent mess, too, in its own particular way’ Craig Brown, Mail on Sunday *****
‘It takes a fine biographer to capture a woman as parti-coloured as this, and Sullivan has produced a delicate, balanced and unforgettably good portrait of a courageous and magnificent woman’ Daily Telegraph *****
‘What would it mean to be the child of one of the most feared mass murderers in history? Rosemary Sullivan’s compelling biography of Svetlana Alliluyeva, Stalin’s only daughter, makes an admirable attempt at an answer…The remarkable thing about Stalin’s daughter was not that she was imperious, infuriating, batty at times, but that she had survived at all — and survived, as this entertaining book shows, with her dignity and integrity in tact’ Sunday Times
‘Was Stalin a monster? Oh, yes. The question that threads through this lively intelligent book is a more interesting one, though: can you live with the idea that you are the daughter of a monster?’ The Times
‘Reading this extensively researched book it is impossible not to feel for a woman who grew up “the political prisoner of my father’s name”’ Independent on Sunday
‘Sullivan controls her widespread canvas and large cast in exemplary fashion. Svetlana was chaotic, exasperating, difficult to the point of impossible — but never boring. She was one of the few credits that you can attribute to Stalin’ Book of the Week, Daily Mail
‘A biography on an epic scale, with a combination of tragedy and history worthy of a Russian novel. She recreates with clarity and compassion the life of a brave woman’ Independent
‘A singular story, brilliantly told’ Daily Telegraph
What listeners say about Stalin's Daughter: The Extraordinary and Tumultuous Life of Svetlana Alliluyeva
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- MRS DS Clark
- 04-08-15
Flawless Rendering of a Remarkable Life
This account of the life of Stalin's only daughter is captivating throughout, thanks to both that author's exhaustive researched, well-crafted narrative and an authoritative yet sympathetic reading.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Paul
- 15-07-16
A life lived in pursuit of integrity and truth
This is the story of a person comming to terms with a reality they had no hand in creating but for which they felt partly responsible. It a story of courage, determination, foolishness at times, but above all an attempt to do the right thing with ones life.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- library
- 02-05-16
excellent biography!
extraordinary and tumultuous life indeed! let down by both, east and west, in equal measure...in search and in need of freedom but never free.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Purplelotus
- 18-10-16
Extraordinary tumultuous sums it up
What did you like most about Stalin's Daughter: The Extraordinary and Tumultuous Life of Svetlana Alliluyeva?
Fascinating life with unbelievable twists and turns. If it was fiction you wouldn't believe it.
What did you like best about this story?
Insights into Stalin and other famous historical characters. The way Svetlana was treated was insightful about human nature generally. Used by so many people but she was not a victim a strong character with her own ideas.
What does Karen Cass bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
Well read made for great listening.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Many moments. Perhaps the disappointment Svetlana felt on being reunited with her children in the USSR.
Any additional comments?
Thoroughly researched but reads more like a novel.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Mister Peridot
- 20-01-16
Hard to say
Tried hard with this book, but giving up now, half way through.
Its a detailed and well researched book. And a very interesting subject. And the reader is skilled. Yet overall I am left feeling that I'm not getting to know the subject of the book, ie. Svetlana, let alone care about her as a person.
The very English voice of the reader is cheerful in a sing song, matter of fact sort of way. And this contrasts strangely with the macabre and at times terrible subject matter. Perhaps its an intentional choice on the publishers part, giving the performance a sort of avant garde sense of horror.
None the less, theres a lot of factual information in this book. So if you are studying 20th century Russian history, its probably well worth the time.
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