Though I've read several studies of the man and his period, including William Taubman's study
Khrushchev: The Man and His Era and Simon Sebag Montefiore's
Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar, I still find the rise of Krushchev rather perplexing. Perhaps a forthcoming study of him will shed further light, and just in time, too, for your Ukrainian and Russian friends who celebrate Christmas on the old calendar. This book's release in early January will be early enough that you can give it as a "Christmas" present in January: Geoffrey Swain,
Khrushchev (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016).
Swain has published numerous other studies of communist figures and the history of Eastern Europe over the last century.
About this book the publisher tells us:
This concise, approachable introduction to Khrushchev explores the
innovative theme of Khrushchev as reformer, arguing that the 'bumbling'
nature of those reforms only partly reflected Khrushchev's uncertainty
about how to act. Swain provides a cogent account of Khrushchev's
political career and of his wider role in Soviet and world politics.
