"In To Overthrow the World, Sean McMeekin investigates the evolution of Communism from a seductive ideal of a classless society into the ruling doctrine of tyrannical regimes. Tracing Communism's ascent from theory to practice, McMeekin ranges from Karl Marx's writings to the rise and fall of the USSR under Stalin to Mao's rise to power in China to the acceleration of Communist or Communist-inspired policies around the world in the twenty-first century. McMeekin argues, however, that despite the endurance of Communism, it remains deeply unpopular as a political form. Where it has arisen, it has always arisen by force"--

Part I: communism in theory -- Karl Marx and the Utopians -- First international and the Bakunin Prophecy -- Second international and the path not taken -- Turning the armies red: Lenin updates Marx -- Bolsheviks take power -- Part II: communism in practice -- Communism in power -- Communist international -- Stalin rsumes the communist offensive -- High noon: communism from peak to trough, and back again -- "People's democracy": communism behind the iron curtain -- Mao's moment: communism arrives in Asia -- "The world was turning in our direction": communism goes global -- Red guards and the Khmer Rouge: communism and absurdum -- From selling Jews and Germans to sports summits, socialist feminism, and the Stasi: Cold War communism in action -- Reckoning: communism under challenge, from Afghanistan and the Reagan Ratchet to Tiananmen Square