Archie Brown, The Rise and Fall of Communism (2009). A global overview of the communist phenomenon in the twentieth century by a respected scholar.

Jung Chang, Wild Swans (2004). A compelling view of twentieth-century Chinese history through the eyes of three generations of women in a single family.

Timothy Check, Mao Zedong and China’s Revolutions (2002). A collection of documents about the Chinese Revolution and a fine introduction to the life of Mao.

John L. Gaddis, The Cold War: A New History (2005). An overview by one of the most highly regarded historians of the cold war.

Peter Kenez, A History of the Soviet Union from the Beginning to the End (1999). A thoughtful overview of the entire Soviet experience.

Robert Strayer, The Communist Experiment (2007). A comparative study of Soviet and Chinese communism.

“Mao Zedong Internet Archive,” http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao. A Web site offering the translated writings of Mao, including poetry and some images.

“Soviet Archives Exhibit,” http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/soviet.exhibit/entrance.html. A rich Web site from the Library of Congress, focusing on the operation of the Soviet system and relations with the United States.