Breaking Stalin's Nose

Breaking Stalin's Nose
By Eugene Yelchin

Maybe the Soviet Union sounds like ancient history to you...but I studied this country and the Russian language all through middle and high school--and college--and it wasn't all that long ago that the giant Soviet Union collapsed!

The brutal dictator Joseph Stalin was before my time--he ruled Russia from 1923 to 1953, but his iron fist and reign of terror had an enduring impact and instilled fear in the Soviet citizens for years and years.

Breaking Stalin's Nose is an illustrated novel and a fascinating account of 2 days in the life of 10-year-old Sasha, a passionate Communist excited to join the Young Pioneers and uphold the dreams of Communism.

Unfortunately his dreams are shattered when his father, who works in the State Security, is arrested and the awful truth of Stalin's power is revealed to poor Sasha.


Another book about Communism and the Soviet Union I read and wrote about in this blog is Laika, a graphic novel about the Soviet space program, a little dog, and the government's hiding of the truth.