"The Life and Death of Leon Trotsky is a biography of Marxist revolutionary, Soviet politician, and founding leader of the Red Army Leon Trotsky (1879-1940). Although Trotsky was a major participant in Russia's 1917 Revolution, he was scapegoated during Stalin's murderous rise to power, which replaced the ideals of Communism with an iron-fist dictatorship. In 1940 Trotsky was assassinated, allegedly on Stalin's orders. Unlike other biographies, The Life and Death of Leon Trotsky is unique in that it is by two people close Trotsky: his widow Natalia Sedova Trotsky (who was also a Bolshevik) and Victor Serge, a revolutionary and novelist. An index rounds out this "must-read" for anyone studying Trotsky's life and philosophy, or major figures in modern Russian history. Highly recommended, especially for public and college library collections."
—Midwest Book Review
"Serge and Sedova pack a great amount of detail into less than 300 pages, especially when discussing Trotsky’s life from 1917 onward. Less comprehensive than Isaac Deutscher’s well-known "Trotsky trilogy," it is a more approachable introduction and offers a more personal touch than Deutscher can provide, especially when Sedova—whose words appear in quotations—speaks."
—Jason Shulman, Democratic Left
"The Life and Death of Leon Trotsky is a biography of Marxist revolutionary, Soviet politician, and founding leader of the Red Army Leon Trotsky (1879-1940). Although Trotsky was a major participant in Russia's 1917 Revolution, he was scapegoated during Stalin's murderous rise to power, which replaced the ideals of Communism with an iron-fist dictatorship. In 1940 Trotsky was assassinated, allegedly on Stalin's orders. Unlike other biographies, The Life and Death of Leon Trotsky is unique in that it is by two people close Trotsky: his widow Natalia Sedova Trotsky (who was also a Bolshevik) and Victor Serge, a revolutionary and novelist. An index rounds out this "must-read" for anyone studying Trotsky's life and philosophy, or major figures in modern Russian history. Highly recommended, especially for public and college library collections."
—Midwest Book Review
