A Nasty Little War

The West's Fight to Reverse the Russian Revolution

Author: Anna Reid

Paperback

The extraordinary story of how the West tried to reverse the Russian Revolution.

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Summary

The extraordinary story of how the West tried to reverse the Russian Revolution.

Description

'Chillingly original' Max Hastings

'Brilliantly depicts a disastrous failure' Antony Beevor

'Witty and elegant . . . Excellent background to today's events' Anne Applebaum

'Britain's most forgotten war, brilliantly remembered' Simon Jenkins

'Vivid and remarkably timely' Martin Sixsmith

From the bestselling author of Borderland: A Journey Through the History of Ukraine

The extraordinary story of the West's intervention into the Russian Civil War

In the closing months of the First World War, Britain, America, France and Japan sent 180,000 soldiers to revolutionary Russia, in a doomed attempt to unseat the Bolsheviks. Entangled in what they termed a 'comic opera' conflict, they crisscrossed the shattered empire in sleds, trains and paddlesteamers, bivouacked in log cabins and felt yurts, torpedoed warships from speedboats, improvised the world's first air-dropped chemical weapons, and organised several coups and at least one assassination. Cheered on by Churchill, they also turned a blind eye to their Russian allies' many atrocities.

Two years later, as the Red Army swept the board, the West evacuated, leaving Russia more blood-stained and suspicious than ever. A Nasty Little War brings this forgotten misadventure vividly to life.

Critic Reviews

Reid brilliantly depicts the disastrous failure of our intervention in the "Russian" civil war. The atmosphere, the characters, the absurdity are all there -- Antony Beevor
In witty, elegant prose, Anna Reid uncovers the true story of the West's failed and forgotten attempt to reverse the Bolshevik revolution. Excellent background to today's events -- Anne Applebaum
Britain's most forgotten war, brilliantly remembered -- Simon Jenkins
Reid brings this little-known period thrillingly back to life . . . A vivid and sparkling account, full of colour and dark drama -- The Observer
Chillingly original -- Max Hastings, 'Pick of the Week', The Times
Elegantly written, and drawing on extensive archival research . . . This remarkable book is simultaneously comic and horrifying -- BBC History Magazine, Books of the Year
Unusually entertaining -- London Review of Books
Thoroughly researched, stylish and entertaining -- Financial Times

About the Author

Anna Reid is a historian and journalist. Her previous books are Borderland: a Journey through the History of Ukraine, now in its fourth edition, The Shaman's Coat: a Native History of Siberia, and Leningrad: Tragedy of a City under Siege, 1941-44, which was shortlisted for the Duff Cooper Prize and has been translated into eighteen languages. She is a former Kyiv correspondent for The Economist, and a trustee of the Ukrainian Institute London.