So, I take exception with the title of this biography since it isn’t 100% clear that Lenin and Armand were actual lovers, and eve if it were true, Inessa Armand was way more than just an appendage to a great man. Despite the title, this book is more accurate than the R.C. Elwood one because it was published after the post-Soviet Russian archives finally declassified Lenin’s letters to Armand. Unfortunately, it seems all of her own letters to Lenin were destroyed (at his request). The author also used new sources from Armand’s descendants. Aside from her relationship with Lenin, Inessa Armand was a fascinating feminist and Bolshevik who lived an amazing and unconventional live until her untimely death of cholera in 1920.
Summer Reading: Circe
This one was highly recommended by my daughter, and I enjoyed it. A feminist retelling of the Odyssey from the witch’s POV. Such a nice break from the heavier academic reading.
Summer reading: The Sum of Small Things
Read a review of this book and decided to check it out for myself. Overall, it is a fascinating read about the rise of inconspicuous consumption among the so-called aspirational class. There is a lot of interesting information in the book, and it reflects on the social consequences of growing inequality in the United States and how it is becoming more and more difficult to reverse its long term effects. Forget about the Rolex and the Benz, health, wellness, education, and security in old age are the new status markers.
