Avid reading and a hunger for knowledge have long been perceived as hallmarks of the virtuous and a means to higher consciousness, but what about Joseph Stalin? Stalin was both a worshiper and the highest priest of his own library, the place where he died of a stroke, surrounded by books and manuscripts rather than his loved ones. How did Stalin’s love of books inform his ruling style? To discuss this, Oksana is joined by Geoffrey Roberts, Emeritus Professor of History at University College Cork and author of Stalin’s Library: A Dictator and his Books.
