Asklemmy

Lenin is a huge yapper, he has tons of fantastic quotes. Another good one is "There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen."

"Without Revolutionary theory, there can be no Revolutionary Movement."

• Vladimir Lenin, What is to be Done?

It's time to read theory, comrades! As Lenin says, "Despair is typical of those who do not understand the causes of evil, see no way out, and are incapable of struggle." Marxism-Leninism is broken into 3 major components, as noted by Lenin in his pamphlet The Three Sources and Three Component Parts of Marxism:

1. Dialectical and Historical Materialism

2. Critique of Capitalism along the lines of Marx's Law of Value

3. Advocacy for Revolutionary Socialism

And as such, I recommend, in order:

Section I: Getting Started

1. Friedrich Engels' Principles of Communism

The go-to FAQ of Communism. Quick to read, and easy to reference if you ever want to clear up a misconception you see or have.

2. Michael Parenti's Blackshirts and Reds

Breaks down fascism and its mortal enemy, communism, and their antagonistic relationship. Understanding what fascism is, where and when it rises, why it appears, and how to banish it forever is critical. It also helps debunk common anti-Communist myths, from both the "left" and the right.

Sectuon II: Historical and Dialectical Materialism

3. Georges Politzer's Elementary Principles of Philosophy

By far my favorite primer on Marxist philosophy. By understanding DiaMat first, you make it easier to understand the rest of Marxism. Marxist states have historically taught Dialectical and Historical Materialism before Political Economy for that very reason.

4. Friedrich Engels' Socialism: Utopian and Scientific

Further reading on DiaMat, but crucially introduces the why of Scientific Socialism, essentially explaining how Capitalism itself preps the conditions for public ownership and planning by centralizing itself into monopolist syndicates.

Section III: Political Economy

5. Karl Marx's Wage Labor and Capital as well as Wages, Price and Profit

Best taken as a pair, these essays simplify the most important parts of the Law of Value.

6. Vladimir Lenin's Imperialism, The Highest Stage of Capitalism

Absolutely crucial and the most important work for understanding the modern era and its primary contradictions.

Section IV: Revolutionary Socialism

7. Rosa Luxemburg's Reform or Revolution

If Marxists believed reforming Capitalist society was possible, we would be the first in line for it. Sadly, it isn't possible, which Luxemburg proves in this monumental writing.

8. Vladimir Lenin's The State and Revolution

Excellent refutation of revisionists and Social Democrats who think the State can be reformed, and not replaced.

Section V: Intersectionality and Solidarity

9. Vikky Storm and Eme Flores' The Gender Accelerationist Manifesto

Critical reading on understanding misogny, transphobia, and homophobia, as well as how to move beyond. Uses the foundations built up in the previous works to analyze gender theory from a Historical Materialist perspective.

Section VI: Putting it into Practice!

10. Mao Zedong's On Practice and On Contradiction

Mao wrote simply and directly, targeting peasant soldiers during the Revolutionary War in China. This pair of essays equip the reader with the ability to apply the analytical tools of Dialectical Materialism to their every day practice, and better understand problems.

After reading all of this, whoever has completed these works should have a good grasp of the basics of Marxism-Leninism and be equipped to do their own Marxist-Leninist analysis, though tons of excellent works were dropped for the sake of limiting the scope to an intro reading list.

"Everything under heaven is in utter chaos; the situation is excellent."

• Mao Zedong

For your specific question regarding modern, easier to get into theory, I really love this person's essays on Marxism. They are more advanced, but focus on modern Marxist analysis. I think Why Do Marxists Fail to Bring the "Worker's Paradise?", Socialism Developed China, Not Capitalism, and Why Public Property? are 3 of the best modern essays and primers on Socialism. The first goes over the Materialist theory of Democratic Structures and how they can be built while critically analyzing AES through an AES-positive viewpoint, the second goes over misconceptions about the PRC, and the last helps explain why Marxists advocate for public ownership and central planning, and why Capitalism makes way for this through decentralized markets coalescing into monopolist syndicates.

Let me know if you have any questions!