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The Russo-Ukrainian War: The Return of History Hardcover – May 16, 2023

by Serhii Plokhy (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 415 ratings
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An authoritative history of Europe’s largest military conflict since World War II, from the New York Times best-selling author of The Gates of Europe.

Despite repeated warnings from the White House, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 shocked the world. Why did Putin start the war―and why has it unfolded in previously unimaginable ways? Ukrainians have resisted a superior military; the West has united, while Russia grows increasingly isolated.

Serhii Plokhy, a leading historian of Ukraine and the Cold War, offers a definitive account of this conflict, its origins, course, and the already apparent and possible future consequences. Though the current war began eight years before the all-out assault―on February 27, 2014, when Russian armed forces seized the building of the Crimean parliament―the roots of this conflict can be traced back even earlier, to post-Soviet tensions and imperial collapse in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Providing a broad historical context and an examination of Ukraine and Russia’s ideas and cultures, as well as domestic and international politics, Plokhy reveals that while this new Cold War was not inevitable, it was predictable.

Ukraine, Plokhy argues, has remained central to Russia’s idea of itself even as Ukrainians have followed a radically different path. In a new international environment defined by the proliferation of nuclear weapons, the disintegration of the post–Cold War international order, and a resurgence of populist nationalism, Ukraine is now more than ever the most volatile fault line between authoritarianism and democratic Europe.

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    400 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    W. W. Norton & Company
  4. Publication date
    May 16, 2023
  5. Dimensions
    6.4 x 1.2 x 9.6 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1324051191
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1324051190
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Compelling.... erudite, objective and immensely readable."
― Ben Hall, Financial Times

"Important and magisterial.... [Plokhy] brilliantly outlines the dangers of perverse history."
― David Patrikarakos, The Times (UK), "Book of the Week"

"Useful.... [and] very much worth reading.... An excellent survey of unresolved regional tensions."
― The Economist

"An utterly compelling account, deeply personal, persuasively authoritative, surely the must-read book for this challenging moment."
― Philippe Sands, author of East West Street

"The essential book about the Russia-Ukraine war―superb, accessible and erudite―by the world’s chief expert. The must-read work."
― Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of The World: A Family History of Humanity

"For those trying to understand the roots of the war in Ukraine, there is no better guide than Serhii Plokhy. It’s impossible to make sense of the Russian invasion of 2022 without knowing something of the history―recent and less recent―and the struggle for Ukrainian national identity; this compelling and lucid book illuminates both."
― Lindsey Hilsum, author of In Extremis

"Insightful.... Readers aiming to follow the fighting should read the daily news, but for a complete picture, this is the book."
― Kirkus Reviews, starred review

From the Back Cover

Praise for Serhii Plokhy

Atoms and Ashes: A Global History of Nuclear Disasters

“Frightening.… With catastrophic climate change bearing down on us, nuclear power has been promoted by some as an obvious solution, but this sobering history urges us to look hard at that bargain for what it is.”
―Jennifer Szalai, New York Times

“[An] enthralling study of the atomic age and its perils.… [A] meticulously researched history… [and] also a timely read.”
―Lawrence Freedman, Financial Times

Nuclear Folly: A History of the Cuban Missile Crisis

“Superb.… [E]ngrossing and terrifying, surely one of the most important books ever written about the Cuban Missile Crisis and 20th-century international relations.”
―James Rosen, Wall Street Journal

“Definitive.… With his masterly book, Mr. Plokhy has sounded a warning bell.”
―Economist

The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine

“Readers can find no better place to turn.… Plokhy navigates the subject with grace and aplomb.”
―Robert Legvold, Foreign Affairs

“In his elegant and careful exposition of Ukraine’s past, Mr. Plokhy has also provided some signposts to the future.”
―Economist

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ W. W. Norton & Company (May 16, 2023)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1324051191
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1324051190
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.56 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.4 x 1.2 x 9.6 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 415 ratings

About the author

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Serhii Plokhy

Serhii Plokhy

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Serhii Plokhy is the Mykhailo Hrushevsky Professor of Ukrainian History at Harvard and the director of the university's Ukrainian Research Institute. The author of numerous books, including "The Last Empire," which received the Lionel Gelber Prize for the best book on international relations, and "Chernobyl," which was awarded the Baillie Gifford Prize for non-fiction, Plokhy lives in Burlington, Massachusetts.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
415 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Kim Zussman
5.0 out of 5 stars Superb and timely work
Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2023
Verified Purchase
I highly recommend professor Plokhy's well researched and timely book about this terrible imperial war. It gives a thorough, compelling, and objective treatment of the history leading up to the original invasion in 2014 and the current conflagration.

This book should be required reading for US congress members and other Western leaders - especially those on the right who (at best) believe the US should not be helping Ukraine, or (at worst) naively admire Putinist Russia. The argument that this conflict is distant and not "our problem" fails when understanding Putin's goal to ressurect the Soviet union and re-subjugate Eastern Europe - preventing former Soviet rump states from continuing or seeking democratic governments. Democracy - flawed though it may be but where votes actually count and every political opponent is not murdered or imprisoned - is a big threat to the chief mafia capo of Russia. Western leaders should understand that Putin's hybrid warfare does not stop in Eastern Europe. His goal is to assemble an empire counterpoised to the "decadent West", and to make a shambles of the West with disinformation, hacking, propaganda, and other means. Russia's current non-representative kleptocratic government with ritual/rigged elections would seem less abominable if people in other countries buy Russian disinformation suggesting their systems are no different.

Hopefully "The Russo-Ukrainian War" will soon be translated to Russian and made available online for those in Russia who again, as in Stalin's era, face repression and prison for seeking truth. For that matter this book should also be translated to Mandarin for open minded people of that other police state.
16 people found this helpful
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william scott
4.0 out of 5 stars Timely
Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2023
Verified Purchase
This is a timely book about the first year of the Russo-Ukrainian war. It stops at about February of this year. I liked the detailed information about how the military operations went, but it was the political - diplomatic developments that were really fascinating. The author goes into depth about the effects of the war on China, Turkey, Europe, Russia and the U.S. The author is Ukrainian and makes no secret that his view point is biased.

I felt the author did not pay enough attention to the intellectual, emotional effect Alexander Dugin has on Putin. Putin's program according to the author is the continuation of Russia's imperial past from that of the tsars through the communist regime of the U.S.S.R. This is true in general because Russia has not had its moment of being a mighty imperial power like Great Britain, France and the U.S. It is also true that Dugin is supplying the intellectual and emotional frame work for Putin's vision of imperial power.
The author is a historian not a political scientist so his ignoring the influence of Dugin is understandable.

The real reason for the war is never stated. Everyone including the author seems to believe Putin's lie that he is afraid of NATO because the West will invade Russia. Putin is afraid of NATO but not because it will invade Russia, but because it will prevent Russia from invading neighboring countries and annexing them. Russia has only attacked and annexed non-NATO countries since 1991 when the U.S.S.R. ended. The hit list includes Chechnya, Georgia and Ukraine. Sweden and Finland now understand that they were on the hit list and joined NATO to avoid the hit. Russia's ultimate goal is to have a clear way out of the Baltic Sea. Annexing southern Sweden would have accomplished this. The Turks know about this type of issue with Russia wanting a clear way out of the Black Sea. Turkey was wise to join NATO even though it is a far reach to claim Turkey as being 'North Atlantic'.

The author seems to believe history is on the side of the Ukrainians. The history of Ukraine is such a tangled mess of invasions, cultures, religions, languages, etc. than history is of little use to justify anyone's position. The Greeks actually possessed Crimea the longest of any people! I believe the author should have played on the field of international law and ethics rather than that of history. The United Nations charter has many articles guaranteeing a country's right to its sovereignty. It also has articles about war crimes and unprovoked invasions. This war will be fought as much on the field of ethics as on the battle field, and so far the Ukrainians are the clear winner on the field of ethics.
31 people found this helpful
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DDT
5.0 out of 5 stars A clear detailed view of the threat of Putin to Ukraine and other former USSR countries
Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2023
Verified Purchase
An excellent detailed account of Ukraine history and particularly the history of Ukraine since the breakup of the Soviet Union. Most interesting is the detail on how Putin wants to re-create New Russia---around Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. The author brings vast knowledge of Ukraine through this book in his detailed account of the Russia Ukraine relationship. The Putin takeover of the eastern provinces, the Crimea, Sevastopol and the invasion of Ukraine in Feb 2022 clearly indicate the ambition of Putin at whatever cost to Russians and Ukrainians to re-create the Russian Empire-- in violation of international agreements and out of context with the norms of Western European peace and democracy. What Putin did not anticipate in his invasion of Ukraine --thought by Putin and the Russian military to be similar to the couple of weeks takeover of the Crimea--was the desire of Ukraine to remain a sovereign nation and most surprisingly the resistance and will to fight of Ukrainians and their leader Volodymer Zelensky. A book that brings understanding to the desire of a country and its people to retain its culture and a harsh reminder that Putin will attack other former parts of the Soviet Union if the West shows any weakness in its support of Ukraine. A well written documented and scholarly history of this conflict--generally not well understood by Western media sources.
8 people found this helpful
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Christopher J. O'Shea
5.0 out of 5 stars This is an important book ...
Reviewed in the United States on September 24, 2023
Verified Purchase
DATELINE KYIV OBLAST

This is an important scholarly work, exceptionally well-written, and covering the period March 2022 to February 2023. Professor Serhii Plokhy has done a great service to all those interested in coming to a fuller understanding of the Russo-Ukrainian war: its origins, contexts, and implications. While the book as a whole is a pleasurable and informative read, the book's "Afterword" provides a masterful précis for those too pressed for time to invest in studying in detail its complete 250+ pages.

V/r - IB
An American in Ukraine
(February 2019 - Present)
5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Glen R Brooman
5.0 out of 5 stars A thoughtful and inciteful work about a very difficult point in our common history
Reviewed in Canada on April 27, 2024
Verified Purchase
I enjoyed the book, although it appears that events are overtaking some of the conclusions. Russia seems to be slowly grinding out a victory. Perhaps professor Plokhy would be willing to write an article for lay audiences about what a partial or complete Russian victory would mean for Europe and for North America. I support Ukraine and dread the consequences of a successful imperial conqueror lurking on the edges of Europe.
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Nelson Senra
5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinário
Reviewed in Brazil on September 18, 2023
Verified Purchase
Todos que queriam entender a razão dessa guerra insana iniciada pelo louco do Putin contra a Ucrânia deve ler esse livro. Muito bem escrito e documentado oferece detalhes e numa sequência muito lógica e apreensível. Leitura indispensável Não há como não ser a favor da Ucrânia nessa disputa, e condenar a agressão da Rússia. De fato não passa de um sonho imperial de Putin, condenável.
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Leif Beck Fallesen
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent analysis
Reviewed in Germany on April 24, 2024
Verified Purchase
Excellent. Brilliant historian able to provide a balanced view of an ongoing war. Perhaps the best investment of time in understanding what is going on in Ukraine. This is not biased propaganda. but serious analysis.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Reading this book is the good use of time
Reviewed in Poland on December 28, 2023
Verified Purchase
A very coherent, concise, in-depth analysis of events. Easy to read and follow. Instead of wasting time on reading/listening dozens of questionable experts better to read one book.
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Paradesi K.Yarikipati
2.0 out of 5 stars Unqualified to be Qualified as Impartial
Reviewed in India on September 15, 2023
Verified Purchase
A narrative of events before and after Russo- Ukranian war.. all in support of put the blame on Russia alone.The role played by the West or European Union , their actions which ultimately lead to this war not properly appreciated..As the author belongs to Ukraine, his love for his country and hate towards Russia embedded in every opinion.In fact I am an admirer of Plokkhii..I sincerely feel that he should have been avoided to write this subject
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Paradesi K.Yarikipati
2.0 out of 5 stars Unqualified to be Qualified as Impartial
Reviewed in India on September 15, 2023
A narrative of events before and after Russo- Ukranian war.. all in support of put the blame on Russia alone.The role played by the West or European Union , their actions which ultimately lead to this war not properly appreciated..As the author belongs to Ukraine, his love for his country and hate towards Russia embedded in every opinion.In fact I am an admirer of Plokkhii..I sincerely feel that he should have been avoided to write this subject
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