Soviet Soft Power in Poland

“Offers interesting observations that can be applied to ancient empires and modern ones. . . . Recommended.” — CHOICE

“Soviet Soft Power, by drawing on material from Polish and Russian archives, adds to our understanding of Soviet-Polish cultural interactions and Polish and Soviet propaganda policy during the first decade of the Cold War. It also offers a very useful point of departure for further research. This impressive book will be of interest to a wide range of scholars.” — European History Quarterly

“Provides deepened exploration of fascinating primary materials from Polish and Russian archives combined with published sources into a revealing narrative. . . . An original contribution to our understating of postwar Europe and Soviet cultural outreach which fills in an important gap in knowledge.” — European Review of History

“[A] rich, well-researched, and at times poetically written cultural history of Polish-Soviet relationships in the first years after the war.” — The Russian Review

“A very welcome addition to the growing field of the transnational history of Stalinism and the cultural Cold War. . . . Will be a stimulating read for anyone who wants to look inside the socialist ‘propaganda kitchen’ and reflect on why the Soviet empire lost the Cold War.” — American Historical Review

“Babiracki’s brilliant, big-hearted book burrows inside the aspirations and failures of the Soviet imperial project in eastern Europe. . . . Meticuously researched, thickly layered vignettes describing encounters between Soviets and Poles of various stripes.” — Slavic Review

“An insightful and intelligent contribution to our knowledge of Stalinist cultural policies.” — Canadian Journal of History

“Beautifully written and full of original insights gleaned from a variety of newly available sources, Soviet Soft Power in Poland reveals Patryk Babiracki as a master of the complexities of Cold War politics in East Central Europe. This landmark work deserves a wide readership among those who want to know what the Cold War meant to the millions who lived beyond the Iron Curtain.” — John Connelly, author of Captive University: The Sovietization of East German, Czech, and Polish Higher Education, 1945–1956

“Babiracki’s knowledge on this very big subject is impressive; his research is magnificent; and the book is very significant, filling an important niche.” — Norman Naimark, Stanford University