Providing the best and most informative explanation to date of the mystery of Joseph Stalin's death, renowned historians Roy and Zhores Medvedev have written a gripping new biography of Stalin, based on findings from research into archives only recently made available, as well as the brothers' own experiences during and after Stalin's brutal regime. The result of nearly forty years of study, The Unknown Stalin takes a central place in the canon of Soviet historiography published since Stalin's death in 1953, contradicting and disproving conventional beliefs and cliches, correcting inaccuracies and misconceptions, and fully examining the facts concerning the dictator's intellect, ancestry, and what happened to the fortunes of his personal effects after his death. Each chapter covers events and developments either unknown or distorted in previous books. Perhaps most remarkable are the Medvedevs revelations and contentions concerning Stalin's last days: there has been much suspicion over whether he was assassinated or died of natural causes, and the authors range far and deep toward resolving this question. The Unknown Stalin resonates with particular intensity due to the personal detail and recollections of the two authors-each of whom has his own history as a Russian dissident and commentator. This startling new work represents the most valuable contribution to the study of Russian history in decades, a book of vital interest to historians and general readers.