The Gulag Archipelago 1918–1956: An Experiment in Literary Investigation I–II – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

The Gulag Archipelago 1918–1956: An Experiment in Literary Investigation I–II by Nobel Prize-winning Russian author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn is one of the defining works of twentieth-century political and historical literature. This is the first UK edition, published by Collins in 1974, translated from the Russian by Thomas P. Whitney.

Drawing upon Solzhenitsyn’s own experiences as well as the testimony and recollections of numerous prisoners, The Gulag Archipelago documents the enormous system of prisons, forced-labour camps, interrogations, arrests and political repression that operated within the Soviet Union. Combining personal testimony, historical investigation, memoir and literary narrative, The Gulag Archipelago examines not simply life within the camps but the machinery that enabled the Soviet penal system to function.

The Gulag Archipelago had an extraordinary international impact following its publication and became one of the most influential accounts of Soviet repression available to Western readers. The original Russian edition appeared in Paris in 1973, while this English translation was first published in 1974. Parts of the work had previously appeared in The Observer and The New York Times.

This substantial 660-page hardcover contains Parts I and II and represents an especially desirable early English-language edition for collectors of Russian history, Soviet studies, and political literature.

Condition – Good

Original green cloth hardcover with gilt spine lettering. Boards remain clean and attractive with light shelf wear and minor rubbing consistent with age. No dust jacket. Internally generally clean and well preserved, with scattered foxing, particularly noticeable to the endpapers and text-block edges. The outer page edges show moderate foxing and age toning. Binding appears firm and sound. Overall a solid and presentable copy of this important 1974 first UK edition.