-
Putin's Wars
- From Chechnya to Ukraine
- Narrated by: David Sibley
- Length: 15 hrs and 12 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $19.63
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's summary
The Financial Times – Best books of 2022: Politics
A new history of how Putin and his conflicts have inexorably reshaped Russia, including his devastating invasion of Ukraine.
Putin's Wars is a timely overview of the conflicts in which Russia has been involved since Vladimir Putin became prime minister and then president of Russia, from the First Chechen War to the two military incursions into Georgia, the annexation of Crimea and the eventual invasion of Ukraine itself. But it also looks more broadly at Putin's recreation of Russian military power and its expansion to include a range of new capabilities, from mercenaries to operatives in a relentless information war against Western powers. This is an engrossing strategic overview of the Russian military and the successes and failures on the battlefield.
Thanks to Dr Galeotti's wide-ranging contacts throughout Russia, it is also peppered with anecdotes of military life, personal snapshots of conflicts, and an extraordinary collection of first-hand accounts from serving and retired Russian officers. Russia continues to dominate the news cycle throughout the Western world. There is no better time to understand how and why Putin has involved his armed forces in a variety of conflicts for over two decades.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
Critic reviews
'The prolific military chronicler and analyst Mark Galeotti has produced exactly the right book at the right time.' The Times
More from the same
Related to this topic
-
Storm Clouds over the Pacific, 1931-1941
- War in the Far East Series, Book 1
- By: Peter Harmsen
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Storm Clouds over the Pacific begins the story long before Pearl Harbor, showing how the war can only be understood if ancient hatreds and long-standing geopolitics are taken into account. Harmsen demonstrates how Japan and China's ancient enmity led to increased tensions in the 1930s, which, in turn, exploded into conflict in 1937.
-
-
Interesting Story
- By Coach Mark on 03-25-23
By: Peter Harmsen
-
The Gulf War
- A Captivating Guide to the United States-Led Persian Gulf War Against Iraq for Their Invasion and Annexation of Kuwait
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Jaime Peters
- Length: 3 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Today, it is known by many names, like the First Iraq War, Kuwait War, and, most commonly, the Gulf War or the First Gulf War. It was a rather short conflict, lasting just shy of seven months between late 1990 and early 1991. Yet, it was still rather impactful because it showcased several essential innovations and changes in political and technological aspects of warfare, some of which are still part of modern conflicts.
-
-
Title should be "In defense of Sadam"
- By michael doucette on 03-17-22
-
Britain at Bay
- The Epic Story of the Second World War, 1938-1941
- By: Alan Allport
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 21 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Here is the many-faceted, world-historically significant story of Britain at war. In looking closely the military and political dimensions of the conflict's first crucial years, Alan Allport tackles questions such as: Could the war have been avoided? Could it have been lost? Were the strategic decisions the rights ones? How well did the British organize and fight? How well did the British live up to their own values? What difference did the war make in the end to the fate of the nation?
-
-
A History worth your read
- By Norm the Nonfiction Reader on 08-18-21
By: Alan Allport
-
The Cambridge History of Warfare
- By: Geoffrey Parker
- Narrated by: Andrew Cullum
- Length: 21 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The new edition of The Cambridge History of Warfare, written and updated by a team of eight distinguished military historians, examines how war was waged by Western powers across a sweeping timeframe beginning with classical Greece and Rome, moving through the Middle Ages and the early modern period, down to the wars of the 21st century in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria.
-
-
Too anglocentric
- By A. Siegel on 10-27-22
By: Geoffrey Parker
-
Case White
- The Invasion of Poland 1939
- By: Robert Forczyk
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 15 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The German invasion of Poland on 1 September, 1939, designated as Fall Weiss (Case White), was the event that sparked the outbreak of World War II in Europe. The campaign has widely been described as a textbook example of Blitzkrieg, but it was actually a fairly conventional campaign as the Wehrmacht was still learning how to use its new Panzers and dive-bombers. The Polish military is often misrepresented as hopelessly obsolete and outclassed by the Wehrmacht, yet in fact it was well-equipped with modern weapons and armor.
-
-
Surprise
- By Kindle Customer on 11-24-19
By: Robert Forczyk
-
Tower of Skulls
- A History of the Asia-Pacific War, Vol. 1 (July 1937 - May 1942)
- By: Richard B. Frank
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 26 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This story casts penetrating light on how struggles in Europe and Asia merged into a tightly entwined global war. It features not just battles, but also the sweeping political, economic, and social effects of the war, and are graced with a rich tapestry of individual characters from top-tier political and military figures down to ordinary servicemen, as well as the accounts of civilians of all races and ages.
-
-
Outstanding
- By Patrick on 03-16-20
By: Richard B. Frank
-
Storm Clouds over the Pacific, 1931-1941
- War in the Far East Series, Book 1
- By: Peter Harmsen
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Storm Clouds over the Pacific begins the story long before Pearl Harbor, showing how the war can only be understood if ancient hatreds and long-standing geopolitics are taken into account. Harmsen demonstrates how Japan and China's ancient enmity led to increased tensions in the 1930s, which, in turn, exploded into conflict in 1937.
-
-
Interesting Story
- By Coach Mark on 03-25-23
By: Peter Harmsen
-
The Gulf War
- A Captivating Guide to the United States-Led Persian Gulf War Against Iraq for Their Invasion and Annexation of Kuwait
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Jaime Peters
- Length: 3 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Today, it is known by many names, like the First Iraq War, Kuwait War, and, most commonly, the Gulf War or the First Gulf War. It was a rather short conflict, lasting just shy of seven months between late 1990 and early 1991. Yet, it was still rather impactful because it showcased several essential innovations and changes in political and technological aspects of warfare, some of which are still part of modern conflicts.
-
-
Title should be "In defense of Sadam"
- By michael doucette on 03-17-22
-
Britain at Bay
- The Epic Story of the Second World War, 1938-1941
- By: Alan Allport
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 21 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Here is the many-faceted, world-historically significant story of Britain at war. In looking closely the military and political dimensions of the conflict's first crucial years, Alan Allport tackles questions such as: Could the war have been avoided? Could it have been lost? Were the strategic decisions the rights ones? How well did the British organize and fight? How well did the British live up to their own values? What difference did the war make in the end to the fate of the nation?
-
-
A History worth your read
- By Norm the Nonfiction Reader on 08-18-21
By: Alan Allport
-
The Cambridge History of Warfare
- By: Geoffrey Parker
- Narrated by: Andrew Cullum
- Length: 21 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The new edition of The Cambridge History of Warfare, written and updated by a team of eight distinguished military historians, examines how war was waged by Western powers across a sweeping timeframe beginning with classical Greece and Rome, moving through the Middle Ages and the early modern period, down to the wars of the 21st century in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria.
-
-
Too anglocentric
- By A. Siegel on 10-27-22
By: Geoffrey Parker
-
Case White
- The Invasion of Poland 1939
- By: Robert Forczyk
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 15 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The German invasion of Poland on 1 September, 1939, designated as Fall Weiss (Case White), was the event that sparked the outbreak of World War II in Europe. The campaign has widely been described as a textbook example of Blitzkrieg, but it was actually a fairly conventional campaign as the Wehrmacht was still learning how to use its new Panzers and dive-bombers. The Polish military is often misrepresented as hopelessly obsolete and outclassed by the Wehrmacht, yet in fact it was well-equipped with modern weapons and armor.
-
-
Surprise
- By Kindle Customer on 11-24-19
By: Robert Forczyk
-
Tower of Skulls
- A History of the Asia-Pacific War, Vol. 1 (July 1937 - May 1942)
- By: Richard B. Frank
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 26 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This story casts penetrating light on how struggles in Europe and Asia merged into a tightly entwined global war. It features not just battles, but also the sweeping political, economic, and social effects of the war, and are graced with a rich tapestry of individual characters from top-tier political and military figures down to ordinary servicemen, as well as the accounts of civilians of all races and ages.
-
-
Outstanding
- By Patrick on 03-16-20
By: Richard B. Frank
-
The Iraq War
- By: John Keegan
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
John Keegan, whom the New York Review of Books calls "the best historian of our day", now brings his extraordinary expertise to bear on perhaps the most controversial war of our time. In exclusive interviews with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and General Tommy Franks, John Keegan has gathered information about the war that adds immeasurably to our grasp of its causes, complications, costs, and consequences.
-
-
A Solid, Quick Overview
- By Charles on 12-08-04
By: John Keegan
-
Immortal: A Military History of Iran and Its Armed Forces
- By: Steven R. Ward
- Narrated by: Kevin Pierce
- Length: 18 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Immortal is the only single-volume English-language survey of Iran's military history. CIA analyst Steven R. Ward shows that Iran's soldiers, from the famed "Immortals" of ancient Persia to today's Revolutionary Guard, have demonstrated through the centuries that they should not be underestimated. This history also provides background on the nationalist, tribal, and religious heritages of the country to help listeners better understand Iran and its security outlook.
-
-
More than a military history
- By BehA on 01-21-17
By: Steven R. Ward
-
For the Common Defense, 3rd Edition
- A Military History of the United States from 1607 to 2012
- By: Allan R. Millett, Peter Maslowski, William B. Feis
- Narrated by: John Pruden
- Length: 33 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Called "the preeminent survey of American military history" by Russell F. Weigley, America's foremost military historian, For the Common Defense is an essential contribution to the field of military history. This third edition provides the most complete and current history of United States defense policy and military institutions and the conduct of America's wars. Without diminishing the value of its earlier editions, authors Allan R. Millett, Peter Maslowski, and William B. Feis provide a fresh perspective on the continuing issues that characterize national security policy.
-
-
thanks audible
- By JM on 09-15-18
By: Allan R. Millett, and others
-
Stalin's War
- A New History of World War II
- By: Sean McMeekin
- Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
- Length: 24 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
World War II endures in the popular imagination as a heroic struggle between good and evil, with villainous Hitler driving its events. But Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin’s War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east.
-
-
Sean McMeekin Does It Again!
- By Stephen F (SPFJR) on 04-21-21
By: Sean McMeekin
-
The Second Sino-Japanese War
- A Captivating Guide to Military Conflict That Began Between China and Japan, Including Events Such as the Japanese Invasion of Manchuria and the Nanjing Massacre
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Jason Zenobia
- Length: 3 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Many people in the West look upon the Second Sino-Japanese War, which took place in the 1930s and 1940s, as a sort of sideshow to the larger Second World War, but there is no separating the two. Imagine the Pacific War, the theater of World War II that took place in the Pacific. If the Japanese were not busy fighting on another front, they would have had millions of more troops available to fight the Americans and the British. In all likelihood, World War II would have ended the same way, but it would have taken much longer and cost that many more lives.
-
-
A good summary of Japan leading up to WW2
- By M Maurer on 11-18-21
-
Armies of Sand
- The Past, Present, and Future of Arab Military Effectiveness
- By: Kenneth M. Pollack
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 24 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Since the Second World War, Arab armed forces have consistently punched below their weight. They have lost many wars that by all rights they should have won, and in their best performances only ever achieved quite modest accomplishments. Over time, soldiers, scholars, and military experts have offered various explanations for this pattern.
-
-
A Very Worthwhile Listen
- By Michael on 08-28-19
-
Between Giants
- The Battle for the Baltics in World War II
- By: Prit Buttar
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 17 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
During World War II, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia found themselves trapped between the giants of the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. Over the course of the war, these states were repeatedly occupied by different forces, and local government organizations and individuals were forced to choose between supporting the occupying forces or forming partisan units to resist their occupation. Devastated during the German invasion, these states then became the site of some of the most vicious fighting during the Soviet counterattack and push towards Berlin.
-
-
Great listgen
- By Michael Blount on 07-09-20
By: Prit Buttar
-
Hitler's Soldiers
- The German Army in the Third Reich
- By: Ben H. Shepherd
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 26 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For decades after 1945, it was generally believed that the German army, professional and morally decent, had largely stood apart from the SS, Gestapo, and other corps of the Nazi machine. Ben Shepherd draws on a wealth of primary sources and recent scholarship to convey a much darker, more complex picture. For the first time, the German army is examined throughout the Second World War, across all combat theaters and occupied regions, and from multiple perspectives: its battle performance, social composition, relationship with the Nazi state, and involvement in war crimes and occupation.
-
-
Thorough and scholarly
- By Mary A. on 03-23-18
By: Ben H. Shepherd
-
Hunting the Caliphate
- America's War on ISIS and the Dawn of the Strike Cell
- By: Dana J.H. Pittard, Wes J. Bryant, General David Petraeus - Foreword by
- Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain, Shawn Compton
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this vivid first-person narrative, a Special Operations Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) and his commanding general give fascinating and detailed accounts of America's fight against one of the most barbaric insurgencies the world has ever seen. In the summer of 2014, three years after America's full troop withdrawal from the Iraq War, President Barack Obama authorized a small task force to push back into Baghdad. Their mission: protect the Iraqi capital and US embassy from a rapidly emerging terrorist threat.
-
-
Disconnected and Dry
- By Anthony on 12-19-19
By: Dana J.H. Pittard, and others
-
Call Sign Chaos
- Learning to Lead
- By: Jim Mattis, Bing West
- Narrated by: Danny Campbell
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Call Sign Chaos is the account of Jim Mattis’ storied career, from wide-ranging leadership roles in three wars to ultimately commanding a quarter of a million troops across the Middle East. Along the way, Mattis recounts his foundational experiences as a leader, extracting the lessons he has learned about the nature of warfighting and peacemaking, the importance of allies, and the strategic dilemmas - and short-sighted thinking - now facing our nation.
-
-
A pleasant surprise
- By Fountain of Chris on 09-06-19
By: Jim Mattis, and others
-
America's War for the Greater Middle East
- A Military History
- By: Andrew J. Bacevich
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro, Andrew J. Bacevich
- Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the end of World War II until 1980, virtually no American soldiers were killed in action while serving in the Greater Middle East. Since 1990, virtually no American soldiers have been killed in action anywhere else. What caused this shift? Andrew J. Bacevich, one of the country's most respected voices on foreign affairs, offers an incisive critical history of this ongoing military enterprise - now more than 30 years old and with no end in sight.
-
-
A Key to Understanding the US Need for Perp. War
- By Darwin8u on 05-01-16
-
Eagle Against the Sun
- The American War With Japan
- By: Ronald H. Spector
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 23 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Spector reassesses US and Japanese strategy and offers some provocative interpretations. He shows that the dual advance across the Pacific by MacArthur and Nimitz was less a product of strategic calculation and more a pragmatic solution to bureaucratic, doctrinal, and public relations problems facing the Army and Navy. He also argues that Japan made its fatal error not in the Midway campaign but in abandoning its offensive strategy after that defeat and allowing itself to be drawn into a war of attrition.
-
-
OK as an overview, but too little detail
- By Mike From Mesa on 03-21-22
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
Overreach
- The Inside Story of Putin’s War Against Ukraine
- By: Owen Matthews
- Narrated by: Saul Reichlin
- Length: 15 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Russo-Ukrainian War is the most serious geopolitical crisis since the Second World War—and yet at the heart of the conflict is a mystery. Vladimir Putin lurched from a calculating, subtle master of opportunity to a reckless gambler, putting his regime—and Russia itself—at risk of destruction. Why? Drawing on over 25 years’ experience working in Moscow, journalist Owen Matthews provides the answer. He takes us inside the COVID bubble where Putin conceived his invasion plans in a fog of nationalist fantasy and bad information.
-
-
Comprehensive Account of the War Through September 2022
- By Jason777 on 12-30-22
By: Owen Matthews
-
The Weaponisation of Everything
- A Field Guide to the New Way of War
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Mark Galeotti
- Length: 6 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hybrid war, grey-zone warfare, unrestricted war: Today, traditional conflict - fought with guns, bombs, and drones - has become too expensive to wage, too unpopular at home, and too difficult to manage. In an age when America threatens Europe with sanctions, and when China spends billions buying influence abroad, the world is heading for a new era of permanent low-level conflict, often unnoticed, undeclared, and unending.
-
-
Clear, concise, and thought provoking
- By Dad / Husband (who rarely reviews) on 03-08-22
By: Mark Galeotti
-
A Short History of Russia
- How the World's Largest Country Invented Itself, from the Pagans to Putin
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Mark Galeotti
- Length: 4 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Russia is a country with no natural borders, no single ethnic group, no true central identity. At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it has been subject to invasion by outsiders, from Vikings to Mongols, from Napoleon’s French to Hitler’s Germans. In order to forge an identity, it has mythologized its past to unite its people and to signal strength to outsiders. In A Short History of Russia, Mark Galeotti explores the history of this fascinating, glorious, desperate, and exasperating country.
-
-
Wonderful short history
- By Tad Davis on 01-19-21
By: Mark Galeotti
-
The Vory
- Russia's Super Mafia
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mark Galeotti is the go-to expert on organized crime in Russia, consulted by governments and police around the world. Now, Western listeners can explore the fascinating history of the vory v zakone, a group that has survived and thrived amid the changes brought on by Stalinism, the Cold War, the Afghan War, and the end of the Soviet experiment.
-
-
Great
- By Kelli Sladick on 06-19-18
By: Mark Galeotti
-
Russia’s Wars in Chechnya
- 1994–2009
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Jonathan Oliver
- Length: 3 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this new edition of his popular 2014 work, Mark Galeotti traces the progress of the wars in Chechnya, from the initial Russian advance through to urban battles such as Grozny, and the prolonged guerrilla warfare in the mountainous regions. Bringing the book up to date, including a revised introduction and new content on the Kadyrovtsy’s role in Russia’s other conflicts, Galeotti assesses how the wars have torn apart the fabric of Chechen society and their impact on Russia itself.
By: Mark Galeotti
-
Putin's People
- How the KGB Took Back Russia and Then Took On the West
- By: Catherine Belton
- Narrated by: Dugald Bruce-Lockhart
- Length: 18 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Putin’s People, the investigative journalist and former Moscow correspondent Catherine Belton reveals the untold story of how Vladimir Putin and the small group of KGB men surrounding him rose to power and looted their country. Delving deep into the workings of Putin’s Kremlin, Belton accesses key inside players to reveal how Putin replaced the freewheeling tycoons of the Yeltsin era with a new generation of loyal oligarchs, who in turn subverted Russia’s economy and legal system and extended the Kremlin's reach into the United States and Europe.
-
-
Ultimate in nonfiction on Putinism.
- By Victoria Eriksson on 08-22-20
By: Catherine Belton
-
Overreach
- The Inside Story of Putin’s War Against Ukraine
- By: Owen Matthews
- Narrated by: Saul Reichlin
- Length: 15 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Russo-Ukrainian War is the most serious geopolitical crisis since the Second World War—and yet at the heart of the conflict is a mystery. Vladimir Putin lurched from a calculating, subtle master of opportunity to a reckless gambler, putting his regime—and Russia itself—at risk of destruction. Why? Drawing on over 25 years’ experience working in Moscow, journalist Owen Matthews provides the answer. He takes us inside the COVID bubble where Putin conceived his invasion plans in a fog of nationalist fantasy and bad information.
-
-
Comprehensive Account of the War Through September 2022
- By Jason777 on 12-30-22
By: Owen Matthews
-
The Weaponisation of Everything
- A Field Guide to the New Way of War
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Mark Galeotti
- Length: 6 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hybrid war, grey-zone warfare, unrestricted war: Today, traditional conflict - fought with guns, bombs, and drones - has become too expensive to wage, too unpopular at home, and too difficult to manage. In an age when America threatens Europe with sanctions, and when China spends billions buying influence abroad, the world is heading for a new era of permanent low-level conflict, often unnoticed, undeclared, and unending.
-
-
Clear, concise, and thought provoking
- By Dad / Husband (who rarely reviews) on 03-08-22
By: Mark Galeotti
-
A Short History of Russia
- How the World's Largest Country Invented Itself, from the Pagans to Putin
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Mark Galeotti
- Length: 4 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Russia is a country with no natural borders, no single ethnic group, no true central identity. At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it has been subject to invasion by outsiders, from Vikings to Mongols, from Napoleon’s French to Hitler’s Germans. In order to forge an identity, it has mythologized its past to unite its people and to signal strength to outsiders. In A Short History of Russia, Mark Galeotti explores the history of this fascinating, glorious, desperate, and exasperating country.
-
-
Wonderful short history
- By Tad Davis on 01-19-21
By: Mark Galeotti
-
The Vory
- Russia's Super Mafia
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mark Galeotti is the go-to expert on organized crime in Russia, consulted by governments and police around the world. Now, Western listeners can explore the fascinating history of the vory v zakone, a group that has survived and thrived amid the changes brought on by Stalinism, the Cold War, the Afghan War, and the end of the Soviet experiment.
-
-
Great
- By Kelli Sladick on 06-19-18
By: Mark Galeotti
-
Russia’s Wars in Chechnya
- 1994–2009
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Jonathan Oliver
- Length: 3 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this new edition of his popular 2014 work, Mark Galeotti traces the progress of the wars in Chechnya, from the initial Russian advance through to urban battles such as Grozny, and the prolonged guerrilla warfare in the mountainous regions. Bringing the book up to date, including a revised introduction and new content on the Kadyrovtsy’s role in Russia’s other conflicts, Galeotti assesses how the wars have torn apart the fabric of Chechen society and their impact on Russia itself.
By: Mark Galeotti
-
Putin's People
- How the KGB Took Back Russia and Then Took On the West
- By: Catherine Belton
- Narrated by: Dugald Bruce-Lockhart
- Length: 18 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Putin’s People, the investigative journalist and former Moscow correspondent Catherine Belton reveals the untold story of how Vladimir Putin and the small group of KGB men surrounding him rose to power and looted their country. Delving deep into the workings of Putin’s Kremlin, Belton accesses key inside players to reveal how Putin replaced the freewheeling tycoons of the Yeltsin era with a new generation of loyal oligarchs, who in turn subverted Russia’s economy and legal system and extended the Kremlin's reach into the United States and Europe.
-
-
Ultimate in nonfiction on Putinism.
- By Victoria Eriksson on 08-22-20
By: Catherine Belton
-
Putin
- By: Philip Short
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 29 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vladimir Putin is the world’s most dangerous man. Alone among world leaders, he has the power to reduce the United States and Europe to ashes in a nuclear firestorm and has threatened to do so. He invades his neighbors, most recently Ukraine, meddles in western elections, and orders assassinations inside and outside Russia. His regime is autocratic and deeply corrupt. But that is only half the story. Unflinching, hard-hitting, and objective, Philip Short’s biography gives us the whole tale, up to the present day. Putin will be the last word for years to come.
-
-
A very timely biography!
- By Anonymous User on 09-08-22
By: Philip Short
-
Putin's Playbook
- Russia's Secret Plan to Defeat America
- By: Rebekah Koffler
- Narrated by: Joyce Sternton
- Length: 13 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Politicians and pundits on both sides of the aisle have accused Russia of interfering with our elections and our intelligence agencies. But the war Russia is waging against America is very different from anything you have heard in the press, as Russian-born US intelligence expert Rebekah Koffler reveals. In Putin’s Playbook, Koffler details how Vladimir Putin is orchestrating a wide-ranging, multifaceted campaign to retake his country’s role as a superpower and to defeat America in the process.
-
-
Pure Right Wing Propaganda. Right out of Putins Playbook
- By Michael Christensen on 02-04-22
By: Rebekah Koffler
-
The New Tsar
- The Rise and Reign of Vladimir Putin
- By: Steven Lee Myers
- Narrated by: René Ruiz
- Length: 22 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The epic tale of the rise to power of Russia's current president—the only complete biography in English–that fully captures his emergence from shrouded obscurity and deprivation to become one of the most consequential and complicated leaders in modern history, by the former New York Times Moscow bureau chief.
-
-
A retelling of facts without much added info
- By A. M. on 03-07-16
By: Steven Lee Myers
-
Downfall
- Prigozhin, Putin, and the new fight for the future of Russia
- By: Mark Galeotti, Anna Arutunyan
- Narrated by: Mark Galeotti
- Length: 6 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Evgeny Prigozhin emerged as one of the most dangerous warlords in the world and as one of Vladimir Putin's chief rivals in Russia's tumultuous political climate, exiled after leading Wagner's attempted coup and killed in a mysterious plane crash. But what is the truth about this enigmatic figure, his role in the war with Ukraine, and the chaos unleashed across Russia by his turn against Putin? And, the aftermath of his death, what is next for Russia in the new stage of late Putinism that Prigozhin's life forged?
By: Mark Galeotti, and others
-
The Russo-Ukrainian War
- The Return of History
- By: Serhii Plokhy
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 11 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Despite repeated warnings from the White House, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 shocked the world. Why did Putin start the war—and why has it unfolded in previously unimaginable ways? Ukrainians have resisted a superior military; the West has united, while Russia grows increasingly isolated. Serhii Plokhy, a leading historian of Ukraine and the Cold War, offers a definitive account of this conflict, its origins, course, and the already apparent and possible future consequences.
-
-
Plokhy delivers as always!
- By Kristinka on 05-20-23
By: Serhii Plokhy
-
Collapse
- The Fall of the Soviet Union
- By: Vladislav M. Zubok
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 23 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1945, the Soviet Union controlled half of Europe and was a founding member of the United Nations. By 1991, it had an army four million strong, 5,000 nuclear-tipped missiles, and was the second biggest producer of oil in the world. But soon afterward, the union sank into an economic crisis and was torn apart by nationalist separatism. Its collapse was one of the seismic shifts of the 20th century.
-
-
Hopefully Not Prescient
- By Joshua on 01-29-22
-
Putin's World
- Russia Against the West and with the Rest
- By: Angela Stent
- Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
- Length: 15 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Putin's World examines the country's turbulent past, how it has influenced Putin, the Russians' understanding of their position on the global stage and their future ambitions—and their conviction that the West has tried to deny them a seat at the table of great powers since the USSR collapsed.
-
-
More like The West against the world
- By Felis N on 01-18-20
By: Angela Stent
-
Putin and the Return of History
- How the Kremlin Rekindled the Cold War
- By: Martin Sixsmith, Daniel Sixsmith - contributor
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vladimir Putin is a paradox. In the early years of his presidency, he appeared to commit himself to friendship with the West, suggesting that Russia could join the European Union or even NATO. He said he supported free-market democracy and civil rights. But the Putin of those years is unrecognisable today. The Putin of the 2020s is an autocratic nationalist, dedicated to repression at home and anti-Western militarism abroad.
By: Martin Sixsmith, and others
-
The Oligarchs
- Wealth and Power in the New Russia
- By: David Hoffman
- Narrated by: Steve Coulter
- Length: 22 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A brilliant investigative narrative: How six average Soviet men rose to the pinnacle of Russia's battered economy. David Hoffman, former Moscow bureau chief for
The Washington Post, sheds light onto the hidden lives of Russia's most feared power brokers: the oligarchs. Focusing on six of these ruthless men Hoffman reveals how a few players managed to take over Russia's cash-strapped economy and then divvy it up in loans-for-shares deals.
-
-
Supreme Chronicle of Murky Times
- By ivan on 03-01-14
By: David Hoffman
-
All the Kremlin's Men
- Inside the Court of Vladimir Putin
- By: Mikhail Zygar
- Narrated by: Dan Woren
- Length: 16 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
All the Kremlin's Men is a gripping narrative of an accidental king and a court out of control. Based on an unprecedented series of interviews with Vladimir Putin's inner circle, this book presents a radically different view of power and politics in Russia. The image of Putin as a strongman is dissolved. In its place is a weary figurehead buffeted - if not controlled - by the men who at once advise and deceive him. The regional governors and bureaucratic leaders are immovable objects, far more powerful in their fiefdoms than the president himself.
-
-
Enough with the Russian accents!
- By Emma Jane Top on 12-17-17
By: Mikhail Zygar
-
The Man Without a Face
- The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin
- By: Masha Gessen
- Narrated by: Masha Gessen
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Man Without a Face is the chilling account of how a low-level, small-minded KGB operative ascended to the Russian presidency and, in an astonishingly short time, destroyed years of progress and made his country once more a threat to its own people and to the world.
-
-
A Preview of Authoritarianism in the USA
- By Jimmy O on 06-08-19
By: Masha Gessen
-
Russia's War
- A History of the Soviet Effort: 1941-1945
- By: Richard Overy PhD
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Russian war effort to defeat invading Axis powers, an effort that assembled the largest military force in recorded history and that cost the lives of more than twenty-five million Soviet soldiers and civilians, was the decisive factor for securing an Allied victory. Now with access to the wealth of film archives and interview material from Russia used to produce the ten-hour television documentary Russia's War, Richard Overy tackles the many persuasive questions surrounding this conflict.
-
-
A gripping tale of incredible, consuming tragedy
- By Rodney W. Schmisseur on 06-09-24
Love Books? You'll Love Audible.
Transform your day
Replace endless scrolling with endless listening. Chores can be fun.
Listen everywhere
Download titles to listen offline, wherever you are in the world.
Carry your entire Library
Your stories go where you go. Audiobooks don’t weigh a thing.
Listen and learn
Discover stories that can change your mind, your well-being, and your life.
Reach your reading goals
You can’t turn pages while you drive—but you can press play.
Find your niche
WIth thousands of titles to explore, there’s something for everyone.
What listeners say about Putin's Wars
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Tommy Svedberg
- 04-26-23
Excellent
Interesting and well performed. As his other work, very easy to access and well researched.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Chris H.
- 10-28-23
Excellent book to read today
This book is detailed enough for the expert in international relations, but well written enough to be enjoyable to the occasional reader on the subjects
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- brash01
- 02-04-23
detailed
very thorough, listened to most of it, to many names and dates for me to remember. I would have enjoyed an executive summary, maybe 60 to 75 percent shorter
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- "btomaz"
- 07-18-23
Another good work
Just one more good book about russia by Galeotti. Thorough work, fantastic detail, overall a good aquisition.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Rick
- 04-28-23
Essential Reading to better understand current eve
The author has an amazing understanding of Russian history and culture making this body of work an essential part of your library if you want to learn about the Russian military outlook along with their leadership.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- A. Nelson
- 05-06-23
Essential context
Offers essential historical context on Russian the military and its disposition at the beginning of Russia’s war in Ukraine. My only complaint is that the narrator mangles every Russian word and phrase - of which there are many. Please either give narrators pronunciation training or hire those who have expertise in the language.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Zaid Al-Mahdawi Customer
- 01-13-23
Great reference
I consider this book one of the most scientific and analytic writings concerning Russian military raise.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anthony
- 01-01-24
Excellent non bias coverage of the war in Ukraine
I felt that the entire scope of what is going on in Ukraine not just from February 2022 was addressed and that respect was given to the invasion and the war which actually started in 2014 was given its dues. That being said the authors coverage of the main invasion was exceptional all the way down to the conscripts and how the minority populations of Russia are suffering as a result of Putins war. This was very non bias and well written book that I’m sure will have updated versions as this war drags on.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Hector Ivan Godoy
- 02-27-23
Solid background on putin’s decision making
Gives you an overview of Putin’s experiences with war and the pre-Ukraine war reforms. It gives you some information to better understand Russian decision making.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- History
- 07-11-23
Very well written
Very well researched book with great insight. Great narrator as well which was very refreshing.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!