THE LIFE OF KARL MARX

The framework of a definitive biography -- and within it not only the study of the life and character of Karl Marx, and of his co-worker, Engels, and of their signal contribution to economic and social history, but also a study of the history of the period in which scientific socialism actually came into being and thrust down roots that are bearing predicted results today. One gets a sense of the sweep of radical thought, of its weaknesses and its strengths, of its exponents and its enemies, of the countries in their relation to Socialism, and of the germs of the future. If one comprehensive historical study of Marx and his contribution to modern life is demanded, let this be the one. Ideally, it should be sold with books such as Marxism and Modern Thought by Bukharin and others (Harcourt, Brace -- page 341) and Handbook of Marxism edited by Emile Burns (Random House -- page 341) and The Coming Struggle for Power by John Strachey, now available in the Modern Library.