The Maisky Diaries

Red Ambassador to the Court of St James's, 1932-1943

By: Gabriel Gorodetsky

Narrated by: John Lee

The terror and purges of Stalin's Russia in the 1930s discouraged Soviet officials from leaving documentary records, let alone keeping personal diaries. A remarkable exception is the unique diary assiduously kept by Ivan Maisky, the Soviet ambassador to London between 1932 and 1943. This selection from Maisky's diary grippingly documents Britain's drift to war during the 1930s, appeasement in the Munich era, negotiations leading to the signature of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, Churchill's rise to power, the German invasion of Russia, and the intense debate over the opening of the second front. Maisky was distinguished by his great sociability and access to the key players in British public life. Among his range of regular contacts were politicians, press barons, ambassadors, intellectuals, writers, and indeed royalty. His diary further reveals the role personal rivalries within the Kremlin played in the formulation of Soviet policy at the time. Scrupulously edited and checked against a vast range of Russian and Western archival evidence, this extraordinary narrative diary offers a fascinating revision of the events surrounding the Second World War.

©2015 Gabriel Gorodetsky (P)2015 Tantor

Critic reviews

"An extraordinary document left by an extraordinary man." ( The Independent)

Informative look at the Soviet perspective

Ivan Maisky was the Soviet Union’s ambassador to Great Britain from 1932 until about the middle of 1943 and that position put him in the middle of some of the most dramatic and historic events of the 20th century. But Maisky was not a diplomat in the mold of Vyacheslav Molotov or Andrei Gromyko, but was an urbane, cultured, outgoing and friendly man who became a close fried to many of those already in power or coming into power in Great Britain and that makes his diaries not only helpful in understanding what happened during the 1930s in a historic sense but also helps understand how the Soviet Union understood those events and hence some of the actions that it took.

Maisky became familiar enough with people like Winston Churchill and Anthony Eden to become a regular dining companion and his insights into the character of the people he met, their actions and the politics surrounding the time are essential to a real understanding of how many foreigners viewed both the individuals and their actions and provide one of the best insights into why the Soviet Union did not trust Great Britain and why they felt it took so long for the West to establish a second front. I have read many books on The Second World War as it pertained to The European Theater but none provided the kind of insight into why Stalin delayed in responding to the German buildup along their borders prior to the German invasion of The Soviet Union, why Stalin felt the West allies held back on establishing a second front and why he felt they eventually invaded France and attacked Germany directly as Maisky’s diaries do. I am not suggesting that Maisky was right, only that the book explains much about the Soviet thinking concerning these actions.

Maisky was very insightful and his comments in the diary about what he expected to happen in the next 3-6 months were often quite prescient and even when he was wrong (for example his expectation that the allies would invade Greece and The Balkans after the Sicily and Italian campaigns) were well informed (these were Churchill’s plans, after all) and realistic.

The book is well constructed with each period being proceeded by an explanation of the historic events being covered, then with the diary entries covering those events and sometimes with a following section summarizing some important event(s). The coverage is sometimes a bit spotty as Maisky did not create diary entries every day, but only when he thought sometime was important enough to warrant them. This construction, with an explanation followed by the diary entries, works very well, but also provides one of the most annoying characteristics of the narration. While Mr Lee’s narration is first class, there is often little way to know when the diary stops and the explanation resumes and it is easy to believe that part of the explanation is actually part of the diary entries.

Mr Lee’s narration is otherwise excellent with varying accents for the various people. His Welch accent for Lloyd George, his American accent for Ambassador Kennedy and President Roosevelt are quite good and he is generally a pleasure to listen to and I have no problem giving this book 5 stars. This book would be a valuable source for anyone interested in the events leading up to and during the first years of World War II.

An excellent take on Britain from a Soviet POV.

If you could sum up The Maisky Diaries in three words, what would they be?

Excellent historical work.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Maisky of course. The way he details things is very well done.

Have you listened to any of John Lee’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have. As good as the others I've heard.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

One funny moment for me was the lunch between Maisky and the ambassador from Nepal.

Any additional comments?

None.

Would be a great BBC mini series

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. Its an interesting story, well told. The man risked his life by keeping the diary after all.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

Maisky was caught between two worlds. Moscow didnt understand London, and didnt want to. He was an effective ambassador, but his very effectiveness made him suspicious. And a suspicious man in Stalin's USSR was a dead man.

What does John Lee bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He goes into charachter periodically, for example with Churchill.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No, I knew the history. But getting it though Maiskys eyes made all the difference.

Any additional comments?

It was a good use of a credit.

Nothing but good things to say

If you are a student of the Second World War, this will be an enlightening view into the official and unofficial Soviet view. Yes, of course the view is from a particular narrow reference point, but everything is. The depth of denial the Soviets suffered from, their paranoia, and their shock is well known, but never-the-less is an amazing sight to behold. It's also humerus to hear a little bit of Maisky's musings about the virtues of communism and socialism, knowing what we do now about Stalin's pre and post war barbarism. This is an excellent "read" and shouldn't be passed over. My only critique is the narrator could have done a better job delineating when a change of perspective occurs. It always took me a moment to realize the narrator had switched from quoting Maisky's diary to quoting the authors observations about things Maisky wasn't aware of, or some other point the author/editor was making. There were even a few cases when just wasn't sure if the narrator was quoting Maisky or not. Minor points though, since the narrator does an excellent job 99% of the time.

Anglo-Russian relations during the war years.

A fine story, gives new insights into Stalin's Russia. The Diaries reveals the thinking behind some of the momentous decisions taken by the leaders of the Allied powers.

Different side of the war

The war from a different view for sure. Very informative a good read and more.

NARROW MINDED ENTITLED SNOB

Can’t take any more Eden-Chamberlain-Hitler-Stalin in the 1930s! I got through a couple of hours before switching it off.