This book is the most comprehensive account of the Ethiopian revolution currently available, dealing with almost the entire span of the revolutionary government's life. It is also the first sequential exposition of events, and thus of the history of the revolution. Particular emphasis is placed on effectively isolating and articulating the causes and outcomes of the revolution.

The author traces the revolution's roots in the weaknesses of the autocratic regime of Haile Selassie, examines the formative years of the revolution in the mid-seventies, when the ideology of scientific socialism was espoused by the ruling military council and finally charts the consolidation of Haile Mariam Mengistu's power from 1977 to the adoption of a new constitution in 1987.

In examining these events, Dr Tiruneh makes extensive use of primary sources written in the national official language. He is also the first Ethiopian national to write on this subject. This book is thus a unique account of a fascinating period, capturing the mood of the revolution as never before, yet firmly grounded in scholarship.