Overall 4.5*
This is a powerful book on a shocking and 'hidden' period of history which I knew nothing about and is not only very well researched but also very readable and accessible. It was an emotional read because of how we view the famine situation, exacerbated by the decisions by the Soviet regime, Although it is unclear how much it was pre-planned , this is clearly a shameful period of history.
The Holodomor will remain in your mind long after reading this book

This is a detailed and authoritative account of the policies pursued in the Soviet Union in the early 1930s which resulted in the starvation of some four million people in the Ukraine (at that time a part of the USSR). It is a shocking indictment of Stalinism and has resonance for today given the actions of Mr Putin's Russia towards the independent state of Ukraine.

Ukraine the bread basket of Europe. Between 1931 and 1933, a man made famine hit the country and killed millions. The Russian revolution had many consequences the most directly which was the graduation of Stalin to leader of the USSR, the collective farms forced the Ukraine into famine and as was so often suspected it wasn’t 100% accidental or poor policy.

The regular rebellions in the region were the reason, according to Applebaum that at 3 million people died in a type of punishment genocide.

An well researched, informative read and somewhat of an eye opener. Especially in regards to recent events in Ukraine.

​I don't often read non-fiction these days but a good history book can capture my attention in the same way that a good novel does.

Red Famine most definitely falls into this category.  

Most of us do not know the history of Ukraine and for a lot of people the events of over 100 years ago in a country far from home, where we are unlikely to have kith or kin seem irrelevant and almost trivial.  

However, to read this book is to realise that history does repeat itself, again and again, to ignore what happened then is to invite it to happen now.

This book is not just dry history, not just words on a page to learn by rote for an exam.  It is heartbreakingly real, it is a story of political dominance by control of the food supply.

Most of us are aware of the Holocaust that happened during WWII and the enormous price paid by the Jewish people during that time, but far fewer of us have heard of the Holodomor where nearly 4 million Ukrainians starved to death in the period between 1931 and 1934.  

 If you starve to death all the people that oppose you then do you have a country too hungry, too weak, too brutalised to be able to resist you.

This book sets it all into context.  It doesn't start in 1931.  The book reveals all the background from the late 1800's onwards that leads to this deliberate choice by Stalin to let people starve.  

I am glad I read this book.  I am better educated and more informed because of it.  I wish such a subject never had to be written about and I worry that we will see it happen again.

This is undoubtedly well-researched but it makes no concessions to those of us who are not experts on Soviet-Ukrainian relations: Applebaum tries to contextualize events by giving a potted history of the Ukrainian nationalist cause, the desire for socialism without Soviet Bolshevism but it can be hard work getting to grips with names and events which flash past. This is not a criticism of t :) e book, more a reflection on the reader who will get most from it.

The central sections about the famine, including personal accounts, are disturbing and harrowing but also more accessible. 

I can admire Applebaum's research but she's not a natural storyteller for a crossover volume as this seems to be: important but a rather dry read.

Certainly not a novel, more of a Masters Degree thesis.  Nevertheless, fascinating and tragic history.

Excellent historical of a shameful deed that has still not been addressed or apologised for by the aggressor country.

Such a shocking history and all the more so when we think of Russia's aggressive actions in the world today. Nothing has changed much.

I knew very little about Ukraine before reading this book, so the fact that the famine was put into the wider political and historic context was invaluable to me. The book was meticulously researched, and illustrated with a wide variety of quotes but was never dry. It seems unimaginable that anybody, let alone a government, could put people through the horrors of this artificially created famine. Some of the passages in the book will stay with me for the rest of my life.

Red Famine is a book I would recommend to anyone who has an interest in history especially the history which surrounds Stalin and his control of the Ukrainian people  It is an eyeopening book, in which the author showed the true history where the largest number of victims were held against this one man and his followers.
Stalin was a monster and this book showed him at his worst.
If you have an interest in history this one is for you.

A must read-A harrowing account on the way Stalin created the famine in Ukraine. A fantastic account of the early Soviet Union.. A fabulous book.

Anne Applebaum's masterful detail and compelling prose makes Red Famine a difficult, but important read in shedding further light on one of Stalin's biggest atrocities. Avid history fans and book readers won't be able to put down this unflinching account.

I have really struggled with this book. I want  to read it. I feel I _should_ read it but it's just unfathomable to me. There's no doubt that it's been excellently researched but I find the style very dry and academic. It starts with a long history of Ukraine which is very involved with endless individuals, groups and places that I have never heard of. I just can't process it any meaningful way. I tried reading Wikipedia so see if knowing more about the history of Russia in a more concise way would help but it didn't. I feel like I need to be a expert in Russia history to find this book of interest. There are sections later on (from chapter 11) where it gets more personal with accounts of how the famine affect individuals but I found it such traumatic reading that I have had to stop.

With thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Books (UK) for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I’m just sorry it wasn’t more positive.

The book contains accounts from survivors of the famine.  It is a rather harrowing account of a dark time.

Couldn't read on time due to a broken e reader. My sincere apologies to the author and publisher for this.

Superb authoritative examination of the famine in the Ukraine. Meticulously researched, detailed, accessible and often shocking, this is essential reading for anyone interested in Ukraine and Russia, the relationship between the two countries and the current tense situation.

Red Famine by Anne Applebaum asks the provocative question of whether Stalin was responsible for the death of multiple hundreds of thousands during a period between the two world wars.

Known as the Holodomor, this period has been conveniently concealed - like most things - from the general knowledge of most in western Europe, although raw in the memories of many in the Ukraine.

The knowledge of this dark period of Ukraine's history was kept hidden through decisions to silence and remove those within intellectual, academic and ruling positions who would speak out.

This book is both challenging and eye-opening to the horror those in Ukraine faced: a story untold to most of us in the west.

It is well written and very well researched.  However, it is not an easy read and is quite involved.  For me it is something to chew ones way through, although if afforded it would be great to read the whole way through.

This is a book that adds a little bit more colour to the spectrum of an often monochrome telling of history.

A very interesting account of the history of Stalin's treatment of the Ukrainian people.  He creatied a famine and thereby the death of almost 4 million people by repression and forcing the ordinary person to run the farming industry without any benefit to them; in fact, they were shot if they ate of their own produce.  This moment in history is  very well documented by Ms Applebaum.  A dreadful crime makes this book heartbreaking to read but compulsive at the same time.

It took me quite a while to read this book. I found myself strugg!ing to get through the first pages but later became engrossed in it.
Anne Applebaum's history of the terrible famine that struck the Ukraine and other parts of the Soviet Union does not make easy reading.  Around 5 million people died of hunger,  the majority 3.4 million in the Ukraine.  Applebaum describes how Stalin's brutal policy of collectivism and depression was a  major cause of this massive human disaster.
I found the chapter with the descriptions of the process of starvation and consequent cannibalism quite distressing but it was still an education.
I had  no previous knowledge of this particular history but a recent trip to Russia made me want to read more about Stalin. If you are interested in the history of this part of the world then this book would make interesting reading.

The author sets out to document systematic creation of famine and genocide in a country Stalin feared..Ukraine. there are no heroes here except those local peasants who fought back with fledgling ideas of democracy, thinking Stalin would not allow mad dedtruction opposed to what seemed to be Soviet socialist principles , the people write and sent messages of all kinds to him .. to no avail. . It was incomprehensible... The gathering of  research data the author has found from. various sources is almost overwhelming and grim. In some ways knowing this not only helps to understand secret political societies' modus operandi but also background to attitudes Russians feel today toward Ukraine . Horrific overwhelming facts support her thesis that Stalin was targeting this entire country for destruction. They survived!