Stalin and the Scientists
{{Short description|2016 book by Simon Ings}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2018}}
{{Infobox book
| name = Stalin and the Scientists
| title_orig =
| translator =
| image = SimonIngs StalinandtheScientists.jpg
| image_size = 200
| caption = First edition book cover
| author = Simon Ings
| illustrator =
| cover_artist = Michael Nicholson/Getty
| country = England
| language = English
| series =
| subject = History of science, political repression, Joseph Stalin
| genre =
| published = Faber and Faber
| pub_date = 6 October 2016
| media_type = print (hardback)
| isbn = 978-0-571-29007-9
| dewey=
| congress=
| oclc=
}}
Stalin and the Scientists: A History of Triumph and Tragedy 1905–1953 is a 2016 popular science non-fiction book on the history of science in the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin by English novelist and science writer, Simon Ings. It is Ings' second non-fiction book, the first being The Eye: A Natural History (2007). He had previously published eight novels.
Stalin and the Scientists was longlisted for the 2016 Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction.
Background
Ings' inspiration for Stalin and the Scientists came from Soviet psychologist, Alexander Luria's book Mind of a Mnemonist, about the life of Russian journalist and mnemonist, Solomon Shereshevsky. Ings said in 2016 interviews that Luria is often referred to as the founder of modern neuroanatomy and "the godfather of the literary genre we call popular science". "Luria's account more or less set the template for modern popular science and ... pretty much set me on the path I'm on now." Ings had considered writing a biography about Luria, but felt that while Luria's achievements were "extraordinary", considering the climate of political repression he worked in, Ings was concerned that Western readers would consider his career too ordinary, and would miss the context in which it unfolded. Ings' passion for popular science and the need to explain the context within which Luria and other Soviet scientists worked, changed what would have been a one-year "modest biography" into a "five-year behemoth" that "burned through three editors" and, Ings added, "nearly killed me".
Ings said, as a novelist, he was "absurdly under-qualified" to tackle a book like Stalin and the Scientists, but added that only a novelist could be so "ridiculously ambitious" and "naive enough to stick his or her neck out so far". Ings felt that given the kind of science prevalent in Russia at the time, perhaps this "really has to be the job of a novelist rather than a historian". Responding to statements that this is "the first history" of Soviet science, Ings said, "Certainly no-one's been foolish enough to attempt to tell the whole story of science under Stalin in a single volume, but be assured I didn't dig this entire thing single-handed from virgin ground."
Reception
In a review in The Guardian, David Holloway described Stalin and the Scientists as a "fascinating story" that reveals "the tragedy and the triumph" of Soviet science. He called it a "lively book" and complimented Ings on his "clear and simple" scientific explanations, and the way he highlighted the personalities of those involved: the "brilliant scientists", the "charlatans", the "visionaries" and the "careerists". A reviewer of the book in Publishers Weekly complimented Ings on the sensitive way in which he exposed the lives of the scientists and their experiences, and how he "ably documents the challenges, failures, and achievements of Soviet science". The reviewer commented that while Ings "can be long-winded", he "engagingly fuses history, science, and storytelling".
British historian and author Simon Sebag Montefiore wrote in The New York Times that Ings "skillfully" portrays the lives of the scientists of this period. He called Ings "an entertaining storyteller who often captures the essence of things", and described the book as "lively and interesting" and full of "priceless nuggets and a cast of frauds, crackpots and tyrants". Montefiore added, however, that while Ings highlights the failures of Soviet science, he omits its successes, for example the Tupolev and MiG airplanes, and the T-34 tank. Montefiore was also critical of errors in the book, for example Stalin's birthday and Felix Dzerzhinsky's tenure as head of Cheka, the Soviet secret police.
Writing in Socialist Review, John Parrington was also critical of flaws and omissions. While he described the book as "ambitious in scope", and called it "fascinating" and "important", Parrington said it is not without "elementary errors", like Ings' statement that "the Bolsheviks ... and the Mensheviks ... missed the 1905 revolution".{{sfn|Ings|2016|loc=Chapter 2: Revolutionaries}} Parrington also complained that Ings does not explain what it was that "destroyed the hopes and dreams" of Russian scientists in the 1920s when Stalin came to power.
American science historian Loren Graham also criticised errors and omissions in the book. In a review in The Wall Street Journal, he said Ings is "a gifted writer", and called Stalin and the Scientists "a good single source" for readers new to Soviet science. But Graham felt that one of the book's shortcomings was that Ings only focuses on topics that interest him, like biology, physiology and psychology, while giving little attention to mathematics and theoretical physics. Graham also noted several "incorrect or exaggerated" statements in the book, for example: Alexei Gastev was a "leading architect of Russia's industrialisation programme";{{sfn|Ings|2016|loc=Preface}} Nikolai Bernstein "invented cybernetics";{{sfn|Ings|2016|loc=Chapter 4: Workers}} and Stalin was "the last in a long line of European philosopher kings".{{sfn|Ings|2016|loc=Chapter 18: 'How did anyone dare insult Comrade Lysenko?'}} Graham concluded that the book is the result of "an impressive amount of study" and "deserves attention", but "a very critical form of attention".
According to the review aggregator Book Marks, Stalin and the Scientists received "positive" reviews, based on 4 reviews.
References
{{reflist|refs=
{{cite book|via=WorldCat|title=Stalin and the scientists : a history of triumph and tragedy 1905–1953|oclc=960275228 |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/960275228|access-date=5 December 2017}}
{{cite web|last=Hunter|first=Tom|website=Medium|title='Achievement, naivety and dread'—An interview with Stalin and the Scientists author, Simon Ings|url=https://medium.com/@arthurcclarkeaward/achievement-naivety-and-dread-an-interview-with-stalin-and-the-scientists-author-simon-ings-f5ccb9a0dc6a|date=22 October 2016|access-date=3 December 2017}}
{{cite magazine|last=Parrington|first=John|magazine=Socialist Review|title=Stalin and the Scientists|url=http://socialistreview.org.uk/419/stalin-and-scientists|date=December 2016|access-date=21 December 2017}}
{{cite web|website=Baillie Gifford Prize|title=Simon Ings interview|url=http://thebailliegiffordprize.co.uk/news/simon-ings-interview|date=14 October 2016|access-date=5 December 2017}}
{{cite web|website=Baillie Gifford Prize|title=Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction – 2016|url=http://thebailliegiffordprize.co.uk/backlist/2016|access-date=5 December 2017}}
{{cite news|last=Holloway|first=David|newspaper=The Guardian|title=Stalin and the Scientists by Simon Ings : review – a scientific state?|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/dec/29/stalin-and-the-scientists-simon-ings-review|date=29 December 2016|access-date=6 December 2017}}
{{cite news|last=Montefiore|first=Simon Sebag|author-link=Simon Sebag Montefiore|newspaper=The New York Times|title=Stalin Gets Results: The Soviet Push for Tech Dominance|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/28/books/review/stalin-and-the-scientists-simon-ings.html|date=28 February 2017|access-date=6 December 2017}}
{{cite magazine|magazine=Publishers Weekly|title=Stalin and the Scientists: A History of Triumph and Tragedy, 1905–1953|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-8021-2598-9|date=2 January 2017|access-date=22 December 2017}}
{{cite news|last=Graham|first=Loren|author-link=Loren Graham|title=Science Under Stalin|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/science-under-stalin-1487635509|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=20 February 2017|url-access=subscription}}
}}
Cited works
{{Portal|Soviet Union|Books}}
- {{cite book |last=Ings |first=Simon |author-link=Simon Ings |title=Stalin and the Scientists |year=2016 |edition=e-book |publisher=Faber and Faber |location=London |isbn=978-0-571-29009-3}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stalin and the Scientists}}
Category:2016 non-fiction books
Category:English non-fiction books
Category:Popular science books
Category:Books about scientists
Category:Books about Joseph Stalin
Category:Science and technology in the Soviet Union