History is often told through the epic struggles of famous personalities or grand movements. Yet sometimes the voices of ordinary people break through. In this episode, Maurice J Casey speaks to Danny Bird about his new book, Hotel Lux, which follows three connected families through the upheavals of the 20th century. Bound by idealism, friendship and love, their journey begins in 1920s Moscow, inside a hotel that was once a sanctuary for international revolutionaries drawn to the Soviet Union’s bold vision for a better world.

(Ad) Maurice J Casey is the author of Hotel Lux: An Intimate History of Communism's Forgotten Radicals (Footnote Press, 2024). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hotel-Lux-Intimate-Communisms-Forgotten/dp/180444099X/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty.

The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.

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