William Taubman's brilliant biography of one of the key figures of the Soviet Union is a study in contrasts -- how the boy from a peasant background rose to the heights of power; how a single-minded, ambitious political player survived twenty years under Stalin; how he opened up to the West after Stalin's death and yet brought the world close to oblivion in the Cuban Missile Crisis. Hugely acclaimed on hardback publication, and winner of the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for Biography, this is a magisterial work of political biography and a riveting insight into one of the giants of twentieth-century history. It is likely to remain the standard work for years to come.