Vladimir Il’ich Lenin

Vladimir Il'ich Lenin was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1924 and of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1924. Under his administration, Russia and then the wider Soviet Union became a one-party socialist state governed by the Soviet Communist Party.

This list of books are ONLY the books that have been ranked on the lists that are aggregated on this site. This is not a comprehensive list of all books by this author.

  1. 1. What Is To Be Done?

    Burning Questions of Our Movement

    The book is a seminal work in which the author outlines his vision for a revolutionary socialist movement, emphasizing the need for a highly disciplined and centralized party to lead the proletariat in overthrowing the bourgeoisie. He critiques the existing socialist movements of his time for their lack of organization and theoretical clarity, advocating for a vanguard party composed of professional revolutionaries who can guide the working class toward achieving a socialist state. The work underscores the importance of political consciousness and strategic planning in the struggle for social and economic transformation.

    The 1226th Greatest Book of All Time
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  2. 2. State And Revolution

    The Marxist Theory of the State and the Tasks of the Proletariat in the Revolution

    This seminal political theory text delves into the role of the state in society and the necessity of proletarian revolution to dismantle the bourgeois state apparatus. It argues that the working class must seize state power, dismantle the existing state machinery, and establish a dictatorship of the proletariat as a transitional phase towards the creation of a classless, stateless society. The work critically analyzes the ideas of Marx and Engels on the state, while also addressing the practical aspects of revolution, including the suppression of the bourgeoisie by the proletariat. It serves as a theoretical foundation for understanding the dynamics of class struggle and the path towards socialism.

    The 8772nd Greatest Book of All Time
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  3. 3. Imperialism

    Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism (1917), by Vladimir Lenin, describes the function of financial capital in generating profits from imperialist colonialism as the final stage of capitalist development to ensure greater profits. The essay is a synthesis of Lenin's modifications and developments of economic theories that Karl Marx formulated in Das Kapital (1867).

    The 17024th Greatest Book of All Time