This exceptional volume of oral history contains exciting new information about Stalin's actual and political 'family', the political Mafia and the clans around him. The author has interviewed key politicians who survived the Stalin era. Kun's special expertise and his access to archival sources in Russia have resulted in a work revealing jealously guarded secrets. In addition to the interviews and hitherto unpublished correspondence between Stalin, Molotov, Voroshilov, Mikoyan, Zhdanov and others, the book also contains a fascinating selection from a private collection of photos of Stalin, his family members, and various political actors of the period.