The August Coup by Robert Service.
After profiling every major Soviet leader, Service turns here to a desperate attempt among communist hardliners to seize control of the Soviet Union in the empire’s twilight.
In the summer of 1991, a group of conspirators staged a muddled coup to overthrow then-USSR president Mikhail Gorbachev, ultimately accelerating the shift from communism to capitalism. Service “captures the ludicrousness of it all beautifully,” navigating readers through the callous incompetence of its leaders “with ease and grace.” Buy The August Coup from your local bookstore.