Stalin: An Appraisal of the Man and His Influence

Stalin: An Appraisal of the Man and His Influence is a biography of Joseph Stalin, written by Leon Trotsky between 1938 and 1940. The book was never finished due to Trotsky's assassination in August 1940 although copious draft manuscripts for concluding chapters survived, allowing editors to complete the work.

The Russian manuscript was translated and edited by language professor and Trotskyist political sympathizer Charles Malamuth. Originally scheduled for publication in the second half of 1941, the book was printed but then abruptly withdrawn from distribution for political reasons due to American entry into World War II. The book finally was released in 1946 when the political relationship between the United States and Soviet Union became frosty. It was subsequently published in French and Spanish in 1948, and in Russian in 1985.

In 2016, an authorized revised second edition was published. British writer Alan Woods deconstructed the original manuscript and reassembled the pieces in as comprehensive a manner as possible, resulting in the addition of 100,000 words. An American edition of the lengthy tome was published in 2019.