The 900 Days
Popular History Intermediate Primary Sources
☭ Soviet
The classic account of the siege of Leningrad — a million dead in a city the Soviets barely admitted was starving.
The Verdict
The classic account of the deadliest siege in modern history, assembled against a regime that did not want it told. Harrison Salisbury reconstructs the 900-day siege of Leningrad — the starvation winters, the bodies on sleds, the city that ate glue and worse to survive — from sources the Soviet authorities had every interest in suppressing. The result is monumental and humane, restoring a catastrophe the state preferred to mythologise or forget. For decades it has been the standard work in English on Leningrad's ordeal.
Who Should Read It
Read it if you want
- The definitive narrative of the Leningrad siege
- Readers who want the civilian catastrophe in full
- History recovered against official obstruction
- The Eastern Front's home front at its most extreme
Look elsewhere if you want
- A short introduction to the siege
- Military-operational focus over civilian experience
- Readers wanting a quick read
Why We Rated It 4.6
Historical Context
The German siege of Leningrad lasted from 1941 to 1944 — close to 900 days — and killed roughly a million civilians, most by starvation. Salisbury, a New York Times correspondent in the USSR, drew on Soviet sources and survivor testimony; the book, published in 1969, was unwelcome to Soviet authorities sensitive about the city's wartime record.
Events Covered
Editions & Reading Notes
Harper & Row (1969)First edition.
Da Capo paperbackThe standard reading edition.
Read It Alongside
Russia at War, 1941-1945 Alexander Werth · 1964 · ★ 4.6
Popular History 
The Bronze Horseman Paullina Simons · 2000 · ★ 4.2
Historical Fiction 
Symphony for the City of the Dead M.T. Anderson · 2015 · ★ 4.4
Popular History Collector's Corner
First editions are common and inexpensive. Check current listings. → Check listings on AbeBooks.
Where to Buy
ISBN: 978-0306812989
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Frequently Asked Questions
- How long was the siege of Leningrad?
- Close to 900 days, from 1941 to 1944 — the source of the book's title. Roughly a million civilians died, mostly of starvation.
- Why was the book unwelcome in the USSR?
- Because it documented the scale of the catastrophe and official failings the Soviet state preferred to downplay.