Bookvica

[A SET OF STALIN’S FIVE KEY ESSAYS PUBLISHED BEFORE THE DE-STALINIZATION]

Item #2746

A set of five pocket-sized, deluxe editions of Joseph Stalin’s collected works, published between 1949 and 1955 by the State Political Publishing House shortly before the launch of the De-Stalinization campaign in the USSR. Not intended for general circulation, these pocket-sized sets were typically produced as commemorative gifts for delegates and high-ranking officials at major Communist Party congresses and elite state gatherings.
Following Stalin’s death in 1953, the Soviet government gradually began dismantling the cult of personality that had surrounded him for decades. The process, later known as De-Stalinization, reached its turning point in 1956, when Nikita Khrushchev delivered his famous “Secret Speech” at the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, denouncing Stalin’s purges, repression, and authoritarian rule. As a result, many Stalin-era publications were withdrawn from circulation, revised, or destroyed, making surviving original editions important historical artifacts of the late Stalinist period.

The lot includes the following editions:

1. Stalin, J. Marksizm i natsional’nyy vopros [i.e. Marxism and the National Question]. [Moscow]: [Gos. izd-vo polit. lit.], 1949 (Obraztsovaya tip. im. Zhdanova). 182 pp. 17,1x11,6 cm. In original publisher’s full-cloth with gilt-tooled title on the front board and blind-tooled profile of Stalin and ornaments on the front board and the spine. Edges slightly worn, but otherwise near fine.
Scarce. Lifetime edition. Text in Russian. First published in the journal Prosveshcheniye [i.e. Enlightenment] in 1913. First book edition in 1914.
Stalin wrote the essay “Marxism and the National Question” in late 1912 and early 1913 while living in Vienna, where he had been sent by Vladimir Lenin to study the nationalities problem within the multinational Russian Empire. First published in 1913 under the pseudonym “K. Stalin,” the work became one of the foundational Bolshevik texts on nationalism and ethnicity.
In the essay, Stalin defines a nation as “a historically constituted, stable community of people” united by common language, territory, economic life, and culture. He strongly opposes both forced assimilation and nationalist separatism, arguing instead for the equality of nations within a centralized socialist state. The essay was especially important because it established Stalin as the leading Bolshevik authority on the national question, a role that later contributed to his appointment as People’s Commissar for Nationalities after the October Revolution.

2. Stalin, J. Anarkhizm ili sotsializm? [i.e. Anarchism or Socialism?] [Moscow]: Gospolitizdat, 1950 (L.: tip. “Pech. dvor”). 172 pp. 17,1x11,6 cm. In original publisher’s full-cloth with gilt-tooled title on the front board and blind-tooled profile of Stalin and ornaments on the front board and the spine. Edges slightly worn, small damp stain on the first ten leaves, but otherwise near fine.
Scarce. Lifetime edition. Text in Russian. First publication in Georgian in 1906.
Stalin wrote the essay “Anarchism or Socialism?” in 1906 while living in the Caucasus, primarily in Tiflis (now Tbilisi), where he was actively involved in Bolshevik underground activity and political journalism. The work was originally published as a series of articles in Georgian-language socialist press as a polemical response to anarchist thinkers who were influential in revolutionary circles at the time.
In the essay, Stalin defends Marxism against anarchist criticism, arguing that anarchism is theoretically inconsistent and politically ineffective, particularly in its rejection of the state during the transition to socialism. He insists that a proletarian state is necessary to suppress the bourgeoisie and organize the construction of a socialist society. The text is significant not only as an early articulation of Stalin’s ideological position, closely aligned with Vladimir Lenin’s views, but also as an example of Bolshevik efforts to intellectually discredit rival revolutionary currents and establish ideological unity within the socialist movement.

3. Stalin, J. Ekonomicheskiye problemy sotsializma v SSSR: Uchastnikam ekonomicheskoy diskussii [i.e. Economic Problems of Socialism in the USSR: For Participants in the Economic Discussion]. [Moscow]: [Gospolitizdat], 1953. 224 pp. 17,1x11,6 cm. In original publisher’s full-cloth with gilt-tooled title on the front board and blind-tooled profile of Stalin and ornaments on the front board and the spine. Near fine.
Scarce. First posthumous edition of Stalin’s last theoretical work. Text in Russian. First published in 1952.
“Economic Problems of Socialism in the USSR” is a work of political economy written by Joseph Stalin in 1951 and published shortly before his death in 1953. It emerged from theoretical discussions among Soviet economists during preparations for a new textbook on political economy intended for the broader socialist world.
In the text, Stalin engages in a major debate over whether the “law of value”, identified by Karl Marx in “Das Kapital”, continues to operate under socialism. He argues that it does still function in the Soviet economy, particularly in relation to commodity production and exchange, but maintains that it is no longer an “eternal” law of economics. Instead, he presents it as a historically conditioned mechanism that will eventually disappear during the transition to the higher stage of communism. Stalin also suggests that the Soviet Union had already entered the lower stage of communism, though not yet its fully developed form. He emphasizes the continued necessity of centralized planning, disciplined economic management, and trained administrators to ensure rational production.
The book was intended as a contribution to an ongoing official discussion among Soviet economists, rather than a general theoretical treatise. It was addressed to specialists involved in developing and standardizing Marxist political economy in the USSR, particularly in the context of preparing a unified textbook for the socialist world.

4. Stalin, J. Oktyabr’skaya revolyutsiya i taktika russkikh kommunistov: Predisl. k knige “Na putyakh k Oktyabryu”. Mezhdunarodnyy kharakter Oktyabr’skoy revolyutsii: K desyatiletiyu Oktyabrya [i.e. The October Revolution and the Tactics of Russian Communists: Preface to the Book “On the Road to October”. The International Character of the October Revolution: On the Tenth Anniversary of October]. [Moscow]: Gospolitizdat, 1954. 120 pp. 17,1x11,6 cm. In original publisher’s full-cloth with gilt-tooled title on the front board and blind-tooled profile of Stalin and ornaments on the front board and the spine. Near fine. Edges worn.
Scarce. Posthumous edition. Text in Russian.
The book includes two theoretical and commemorative writings by Joseph Stalin on the meaning and strategy of the Bolshevik seizure of power in 1917:
The October Revolution and the Tactics of Russian Communists (preface to On the Road to October) is a retrospective essay in which Stalin explains the Bolsheviks’ strategic approach leading up to the revolution. He presents the victory not as a spontaneous uprising, but as the result of disciplined organization, correct timing, and adherence to Marxist-Leninist analysis of Russia’s “revolutionary situation.” The text emphasizes the importance of the party’s centralized leadership and ideological unity, portraying these as decisive factors in overcoming both the Provisional Government and rival socialist currents.
“The International Character of the October Revolution”, written in 1927, marks the tenth anniversary of the revolution and develops a claim that the 1917 events were not merely a Russian phenomenon, but the beginning of a global revolutionary process. Stalin argues that the October Revolution opened a new era in world history by proving that the working class could successfully seize power and begin building socialism. At the same time, he stresses that while the revolution had international significance, its success depended on specific Russian conditions and the leadership of the Bolshevik Party.

5. Stalin, J. Vooruzhennoye vosstaniye i nasha taktika; Dve skhvatki: (Po povodu 9 yanvarya) [i.e. Armed Uprising and Our Tactics; Two Fights: (Regarding January 9)]. [Moscow]: [Gospolitizdat], 1955. 128 pp. 17,1x11,6 cm. In original publisher’s full-cloth with gilt-tooled title on the front board and blind-tooled profile of Stalin and ornaments on the front board and the spine. Near fine. Edges worn.
Scarce. Posthumous edition. Text in Russian.
The book includes two revolutionary essays by Joseph Stalin, produced in the context of the 1905 Russian Revolution and the broader struggle against the Tsarist regime.
“Armed Uprising and Our Tactics” is a theoretical and practical discussion of how revolutionaries should prepare for and conduct an armed insurrection. Stalin argues that spontaneous protests are not enough to overthrow the autocracy; instead, a disciplined and centralized revolutionary party must organize the working class, coordinate action, and prepare for decisive armed confrontation. The text reflects the influence of Vladimir Lenin’s ideas on the necessity of a professional revolutionary vanguard.
“Two Fights” refers to Stalin’s reflections on the events of Bloody Sunday (January 9, 1905), when peaceful demonstrators in St. Petersburg were shot by imperial troops. Stalin interprets this event as marking a turning point in the revolutionary struggle, dividing it into two interconnected “fights”: the mass struggle of the working people and the organized political struggle led by the revolutionary party. He emphasizes that the massacre exposed the violent nature of the Tsarist state and intensified the revolutionary consciousness of the proletariat.
Worldcat shows copies of the edition at Library of Congress, Ohio State University, University of Oregon Libraries, and Stanford University.


Overall, an important collection of Stalin’s five key essays published shortly before the De-Stalinization period.

Price: $950.00