Books like Two Tactics of Social Democracy in the Democratic Revolution

AudiobookA relatively short and insightful pamphlet from the 1905 Russian Revolution. Historically, this text is quite fascinating: the Bolsheviks have not fully fleshed out their identity yet, and still identity as "Social Democrats," a term which means something very different today than it did 113 years ago. While this is pretty far down a reasonable priority list of Lenin's writings, I still found it helpful. The writing is incredibly specific in who it targets, and thus it takes a while to understand the character of the organizations Lenin rails against with his characteristic vitriol and sharp tongue. The thrust of the text revolves around a handful of core political questions: how should collaboration with the bourgeoisie be approached? What should be the attitude of the revolutionary movement towards participation in the provisional government established after the overthrow of the Tsar? What constitutes a decisive victory over Tsarism? What is the nature and purpose of the revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat and peasantry?These questions, answered thoroughly and passionately by Lenin, are not of enormous relevance today, as Feudalism and Monarchism are not really what we are struggling against. However, the text contains some excellent insights for any revolutionary party, especially in the final few chapters and the first and third post-script. Moreover, Lenin’s critiques of the bourgeois revolutionaries and the Mensheviks are useful in dealing with present-say “democratic socialist” parties and other factions of the progressive left. In general, I found this text helpful, but would not consider it to be high priority reading unless you are, like me, desperate for free audiobooks, or else have way too much time on your hands for reading theory.