In 1919 two legendary radicals were deported from the United States to Russia. Emma Goldman and Alexander Berkman were greeted like heroes upon their arrival. The new Bolshevik government welcomed them. Berkman described his arrival as "the most sublime day of my life". Lenin's government even offered them official government jobs. And yet both left Russia, disillusioned in just two years. Their writings and public speaking about their experiences, which were amongst the first critical analyses of Bolshevik Russia, were unwelcomed by the Left in general. Ida Mett went through a similar experience in Russia, and when she left she wrote a harrowing account of the Red Army's brutal repression of the Kronstadt sailors.

This attack on the heroes of October was organized by Trotsky. 1917 offers a unique alternative perspective on the early years of the new Russia through these three eyewitnesses. It features an eloquent introduction by Murray Bookchin, as well as contemporary commentaries by Thomas Jeffrey Miley and Dimitrios Roussopoulos, these latter presentations were made during a recent conference at Cambridge University. A touching poem by Dan Georgakas adds to this rich collection of insights. Published for the centennial of October 1917, this exceptional ensemble of writings engages an ongoing discussion which analyzes, bemoans, and celebrates both the bitter failures and the deeper underlining currents of revolutions even into our own times. Book jacket.