Putin's People

How the KGB Took Back Russia and Then Took On the West

By: Catherine Belton

Narrated by: Dugald Bruce-Lockhart

"This riveting, immaculately researched book is arguably the best single volume written about Putin, the people around him and perhaps even about contemporary Russia itself in the past three decades." (Peter Frankopan, Financial Times)

Interference in American elections. The sponsorship of extremist politics in Europe. War in Ukraine. In recent years, Vladimir Putin’s Russia has waged a concerted campaign to expand its influence and undermine Western institutions. But how and why did all this come about, and who has orchestrated it?

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. The result is a chilling and revelatory exposé of the KGB’s revanche - a story that begins in the murk of the Soviet collapse, when networks of operatives were able to siphon billions of dollars out of state enterprises and move their spoils into the West. Putin and his allies subsequently completed the agenda, reasserting Russian power while taking control of the economy for themselves, suppressing independent voices, and launching covert influence operations abroad.

Ranging from Moscow and London to Switzerland and Brooklyn’s Brighton Beach - and assembling a colorful cast of characters to match - Putin’s People is the definitive account of how hopes for the new Russia went astray, with stark consequences for its inhabitants and, increasingly, the world.

Financial Times Books of the Year - 2020

The Telegraph (UK) Best Books of the Year - 2020

A Macmillan Audio production from Farrar, Straus and Giroux

©2020 Catherine Belton (P)2020 Macmillan Audio

Connects dots.

Answers more questions about current politics than any other I have read. Details why assuming that current presidents are playing by any rules is dangerous. USA and Russia currently both mobs practicing KGB politics.

Well researched, well written, startling story

Comprehensive and a fast pace. Very credible and stunning narrative. Ok delivery is a bit ‘breathless’ at times.

Critical given recent events.

One cannot comment on Russia without understanding the Siloviki. Catherine Belton peers into the twilight world of Putin’s cronies and their influence around the world. This book is a great service, she deserves a Presidential Medal of Freedom for her work.

Very good

Always wondered about details? These are the details of criminal activities followed by intelligence matters. Must read.

Must read to understand current Ukraine crisis

Started a little slow and confusing, but near the end as it ties closer to current events is eye opening

understand putin

this book will explain clearly putin's current state
why he is doing what he is doing, and why he can't put on the breaks

Excellent!

A must read for understanding these days . Everyone should know what's behind the scenes...

very good

this book is near perfect. last chapter is the weakest. it tries to incriminate trump, but doesnt do it successfully. yes, i agree russians were happy when he won, and in fact may have gelp him win, but ever since he became a president nothing got easier for russia. he may have benefited but has not returned favor..
other than luberal bias toward trump, this book is near perfect. mafia rules over russia

Brilliant, clear, highly informative

Belton’s book is so powerfully informative that you think you’re being let in on top secret info. But if this info is so available, you have to wonder how Western nations have stood back and watched Putin run a very familiar playbook over and over again. What this book does so wonderfully is prove that when we elect leaders, we really are electing the modes of operation, the mindsets, the personal intentions, and the belief systems of their inner circle.

This is great insight into Putin, but also into understanding the very convincing positioning of perception that Russia (and, of course, all powerful nations) have engaged in when it comes into portraying themselves to their own people.

solid overview of why russia is the way it is.

pretty thorough accounting of the post cold war world in Russia and how everything is tied to putin and his cronies. didn't care for the final chapter that laid out a bunch of outdated and debunked Trump myths.