This unique work is the most comprehensive and up-to-date source of information on the elite of the Soviet Union publicly available in the English language. Containing a detailed guide to the structure and hierarchy of Soviet organizations, and biographies of the most prominent members of the elite, it functions as both a directory and a handbook.

The Tauris Soviet Directory has been compiled under the supervision of Alex Pravda and with the advice of a panel of experts including such distinguished specialists as John Erickson, Peter Frank, Philip Hanson and Geoffrey Hosking. It is drawn from both Soviet and Western sources.

The Tauris Soviet Directory provides data on the structure of Soviet organizations in an impressive range of fields:

* The Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Party Hierarchy
* The Government and Ministerial Bureaucracy
* Regional Party and Government Structures
* The Armed Forces The Security Services
* Diplomacy and International Affairs
* The Academy of Sciences
* The Soviet Space Agency
* Industrial Management
* Commercial Managements and Trade Organizations
* Economic and Financial Management
* Research Institutes and Think Tanks
* The Arts and Intellectuals
* The Media
* Trades Unions
* Religious Groups

This information is contained in an extensive directory of the hierarchies of individual Soviet organizations.

In addition, The Tauris Soviet Directory provides detailed information on almost 2,000 of the most important members of the Soviet elite. Carried in an alphabetical biography section, each entry supplies information on career history, publications, honours and awards, as well as personal details. An unusual feature of the work is that most entries carry addresses, and many also include telephone and telex numbers.

This work will therefore prove an indispensable tool for all who have a professional interest in the Soviet Union.