Blending first hand accounts of grassroots politics with an original theory of social relations under communism, this 1997 book seeks to explain one of the seminal events of this century: the rebirth of politics in Russia amid the collapse of the USSR. The authors trace the process from the pre-political period of dissident activity, through perestroika and the appearance of political groups and publications, elections, the formation of political parties and mass movements, counter-revolution and coup d'état, the victory of democratic forces and the organization of a Russian state; to the struggle of power in the post-communist epoch, the violent end of the first republic and the contentious relations engulfing its successor. By focusing on the popular forces which accomplished Russia's political rebirth, rather than the reforms of the Soviet establishment, this book offers an original perspective on this critical period.

"...this book is a good example of theoretical clarity and recent history." D. McIntosh, Choice

"...offers a valuable account of the rise of the informal movement in late Soviet Russia....the authors are to be congratulated for providing a thorough and uniquely knowledgeable analysis of an important problem." The Russian Review

"...a comprehensive study of the origins and course of emergence of post-communist politics in Russia. ...a valuable contribution to the slim body of literature on the political groupings and organizations which brought about Russia's peaceful revolution." Andreas Umland, H-Net Reviews

"...on of the first books that seeks to explain change and continuity in the Soviet/Russian political system both before and after the Soviet collapse." Michael Mc Faul, American Journal of Sociology