navtis@bookwyrm.social reviewed The Conquest of Bread by Peter Kropotkin (Penguin classics)
Anniversary reread
Reread for the (sad) 100th anniversary of Kropotkin's death.
Paperback, 240 pages
English language
Published Oct. 15, 2024 by AK Press.
The Conquest of Bread is Peter Kropotkin’s most extensive study of human needs and his outline of the most rational and equitable means of satisfying them. The most important and widely read exposition of anarchist economic theory, its combination of detailed historical analysis and far-reaching utopian vision is a step-by-step guide to social revolution: the concrete means of achieving it and the new world that humanity can create. Writing in a way that he describes as "moderate in style, but revolutionary in substance," Kropotkin adeptly translates complex ideas into common language, while rendering the often-amorphous aspirations of social movements into coherent form. Includes an introduction that historically situates and discusses the contemporary relevance of Kropotkin’s ideas.
Reread for the (sad) 100th anniversary of Kropotkin's death.
Basically the introduction to anarcho-communism. A relatively short and digestible read that presents many interesting ideas but be prepared to struggle your way through pages of calculations that aim to show you that an anarchist society is possible in the late 19th century.