Softening without Liberalization in the Soviet Union

Rein Taagepera is Professor of Social Science and Chair of the Program in Politics and Society at the University of California in Irvine.

Professor Taagepera has pulled off a brilliant feat. He takes dramatic, highly emotional material) the life and death of a national martyr) and does three things with it. He lays out the facts with meticulous care and documentation. He punctuates his narrative with balanced and thoughtful judgments. And he relates his gripping story with skill to much wider Soviet and world issues. The many photographs of Dr. Kukk and his family are almost unbearably ving. -- Peter Reddaway, School of Economics and Political Science Professor Taagepera has pulled off a brilliant feat. He takes dramatic, highly emotional material) the life and death of a national martyr) and does three things with it. He lays out the facts with meticulous care and documentation. He punctuates his narrative with balanced and thoughtful judgments. And he relates his gripping story with skill to much wider Soviet and world issues. The many photographs of Dr. Kukk and his family are almost unbearably ving. -- Peter Reddaway, School of Economics and Political Science