1956 was a year of political drama. It saw the Anglo-French seizure of the Suez Canal, Nikita Khruschev's Secret Speech, denouncing Stalin, unrest across Eastern Europe and the Russian invasion of Hungary. This book discusses the convulsions which enveloped the Communist Party of Great Britain in the aftermath of Khruschev's revelations. It reprints the text of The Reasoner for the first time in 60 years. It tells the story of this journal and its editors: John Saville and E.P. Thompson. The Reasoner proved critical in organising opposition to Stalinism in the Communist Party. The editors have provided detailed notes on each issue and a selection of documents from both the party leadership and its opponents. Original essays explore how the events of 1956 came about, their impact on British Communism and the dissident political thinking. Meticulously evidenced, thought-provoking and iconoclastic, this text will be essential reading for all those seeking to understand British Communism and the politics of Marxism in the second half of the twentieth century.
