Description
Book SynopsisWhen Nikita Khrushchev toured America in 1959, the country was enjoying a period of unprecedented prosperity, just as the Cold War and the possibility of thermonuclear annihilation were causing widespread dread throughout the land. This book for the first time fully explores Khrushchev's journey as a reflection of a critical moment in US life.
Trade ReviewEven though many Cold War scholars understate the import of Khrushchev's 1959 American visit, it has long needed the incisive, full-length, and remarkably thorough treatment that it receives here: as an event of considerable historical significance on its own terms. The authors tell a fascinating tale, with a narrative that is at once lively, colorful, fast-paced, and thoughtful. They place in bold relief the clash between a true believer in the superiority of the Soviet system—probably the last such true believer to hold power in Moscow—and the icons of capitalism that he repeatedly confronted during his visit.
Nikita Khrushchev's Journey into America portrays the ideological nature of the Cold War in the 1950s, from the true believer in Marxism-Leninism who ruled the Soviet Union to the vainglorious movie studio chief who hosted the Soviet ruler in Hollywood to the self-assured Iowa agribusinessman."" - Robert McMahon, Ralph Mershon Professor Emeritus, Ohio State University
