"Storm Over the Balkans" is the first photographic compendium to use local photographers. A real feat, journalistically gripping. A unique collection of images, most of which would otherwise remain unseen. - David Friend

Before undergoing a major tour of central Europe in 1998, I used this text, edited by the renowned Czech specialist, James Naughton, as an adjunct to study up on these areas. It provides a much-needed supplement to the usual sightseeing guidebooks out there, especially if one has a literary bent like myself. I toured with one of the major travel agencies; we hit all of the expected tourist sites but with the "downtime" provided during any touring excursion, I went ahead and hit the "literary sites." This book inspired me to hunt down the Adam Mickiewicz Museum of Literature in Old Town Warsaw which contains manuscripts, mementos, and portraits, particularly from the romantic era. The guidebook also inspired me to sample a coffee and pastry at the famous Jama Michalikowa coffeehouse on Florianska Street in Krakow, "the gathering place for early 20c writers & poets" and reportedly a favorite hangout of the late Jerzy Kosinski when he would visit his native Poland. Inbetween gazing at the architectural gems of Prague, I was able to visit Kafka's birthplace and his gravesite (and leave a note under a stone--the touristy thing to do at Kafka's grave). In preparation for an upcoming trip to Slovakia, I have already devoured the chapter on Slovakia, written by Mr. Naughton himself. Thanks to his diligence in the section entitled "Literary Landmarks," I've plotted out an entire literary itinerary to visit, including the birthplaces and/or memorials of Slovak writers like Timrava, Krasko, Kollar and Bernolak. As a student of Slovak culture and literature, I also found Naughton's list of Slovak literature translated into English an invaluable resource. Other countries included in the book are Hungary, Romania, Albania, Bulgaria and the lands of the former Yugoslavia. Short author bio's/photo's and condensed literary samplings from various authors are a nice touch as well.

HISTORIANS HAVE LEFT US MANY chestnuts about the origins of the Vlachs. The field is long on theory but short on scholarship. Tom Winnifrith helps to change that. The long espoused postulatum that the Vlachs are the descendents of pilloried and forgotten Legionnaire posts along the via egnatia gains more credible ground in Winnifrith's treatise.

And just in the nick of time.

Sundry groups of nationalists take an interest in claiming the Vlachoi because they manifest in their wide settlements the confirmation or rejection of nationalist ambitions for neighboring territories. Romanian and Greek historians, for example, continue to vie for international recognition of their claims that they are the physical progenitors of the Vlachs; if Vlachs are the sons and daughters of Greeks, then Greeks have that much further claim on historically disputed Romanian lands.

The historical Vlach is perhaps better understood than the modern Vlach. They can at least claim the minds and pens of the Byzantine chroniclers; Anna Comnena wrote from her diary that the appearance of the Vlachs coincided with the Pechineg invasion of 1091 AD, and she supposes they are the lucky descendents of those "who lived to see May." But their citation in Byzantine history is enigmatic, as well: they are often fighting for and against the Eastern Roman Empire simultaneously, making them frontier pariah.

In many ways the enigmatic historical narrative of the Vlachs has not changed. They stand apart from the nation states they live in. "Under the Turkish Empire," Winnifrith writes, "the vlachs [sic] were just one more subject race; in the nation states of Albania, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Greece they are a discouraged minority."

Winnifrith has written a traveler's tale: he returns to the mysterious northern Pindus range to revive a smoldering fascination for these anachronistic people, said, by his own account of the fascination, to have begun innocently enough on a bus ride through rural Greece. A! rmed with census reports, several centuries of other traveler's tales, and the slim scholarly works of his predecessors, Winnifrith visits the remaining communities and investigates their strategies for survival. Winnifrith's own hypothesis for the origin of the sedulous Vlach does not fall far from the Chestnut tree: Vlachs are not the descendents of garrisons along the via egnatia; but are the descendents of fallen garrisons further south combined with brigands of defeated Goths who teamed with the Romans and willingly accepted their language.

Noel Malcolm's reputation as an authority on the Balkans has been established by his previous (and equally illuminating) studies of the region. In Kosovo: A Short History, Malcolm traces the origins of the myths that are relavant in regional conflicts today. But his book is more than just an explanation of historical fact: his prose and research are exemplary! Contrary to some other criticisms, his sections on ethnicity and linguistics are fascinating! The allegations of bias are valid but only in the intellectual sense that all history is subjective and therefore biased. I am Serbian, and I must admit that I approached this book with the same scepticism I approach all material relating to Serbia. Most of the content published today trivialises Serbian feelings towards Kosovo, and the Albanian's struggle for equality as well. This work is interesting and informative - a must for any student of history and anyone who wishes to understand the Balkans of today.

Frankly I'm amazed at those reviewers who accuse the author of anti Serb bias - this can only mean that anyone who doesn't go along with the full panoply of Serbian nationalist mythology and sense of victimhood is anti-Serb! This book is genuinely illuminating and helpful and even-handedly takes swipes at both Albanian and Serbian overstatements. For example, contrary to what some Serbians say, Kosovo simply is not the cultural 'cradle" or 'heartland' of Serbia - if anywhere that is Rascia (Raska) further north, well within Serbia proper. On the other hand, despite what some Albanian historians claim, medieval Kosovo was definitely predominantly Serb. And so on. Also the author says - and I strongly agree - that a more positive interpretation needs to be taken of the Ottoman empire - compared to many European states the Ottoman empire was a model of tolerance and good government - at least to start with (it degenerated later into incompetence and corruption). An excellent book and well worth reading - it will probably annoy Serbs and Albanians equally. One criticism I do have is that the author spends a lot of time discussing details of documentary and linguistic controversies which interrupt the narrative, are not always easy to follow, and which ought perhaps to have been banished to the footnotes.

Remarkable for its thoroughness in its research. Malcolm has dug up many documented sources that seem not to have seen the light of day for some time. According to Malcolm, "there is not a single library, in Western Europe or even in the Balkans, that offers all the relevant materials under one roof." That is a tragedy. But it goes along way to explaining the distortions of the region's history. The citation list for this book is a virtual tour of libraries and holdings in the cities and towns of the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian Empires and those of the Great Powers of the 19th century. Again this isn't surprising as a great deal of the historical mythology was created during the last half of the 19th century.

"Kosovo: a short history" is remarkable in its clear, readable prose. This is not a dull text. And the region and its history should have been better known to the West. Right through the book, well-known historical figures make cameo appearances. My favourite was a fellow who in 1912 or 1913 was " shocked by the evidence he encountered of atrocities by Serbian and Bulgarian forces." The fellow would later become better known as Leon Trotsky. But the book is full of these oddities. It isn't surpising. Look at a map and Kosovo was an overland route to the Middle East - and a bulwark of the Ottoman Empire against Western and Central Europe: Christian Europe. I should have known all this much earlier, but - like most western educated historians - I didn't pay enough attention.

This short study examines perceptions of the Balkans-both within the region and by outsiders-and how the region's image has changed over time. She analyzes the effects that those perceptions have had in shaping the underlying reality. This is rather an advanced work and will sometimes prove difficult reading for the nonspecialist. The author points to a certain hypocrisy in how Western Europe-just five decades after its own ethnic cleansing-views ethnic homogenization processes in the Balkans. At the same time, Todorova would not allow Balkan political leaders and intellectuals to shift blame and responsibility for their own actions to history, to foreign intervention or to five centuries of Ottoman occupation.

"Imagining the Balkans" is an examination and critical analysis of perceptions of the Balkans, both by outsiders and Balkan residents. In this, Todorova emphasizes the concept of Balkanism, similar to Edward Said's Orientalism, but with some crucial differences - the main ones being that the Balkans are a more concrete concept than the rather vague "Orient," and the lack of a clear 'us vs. them' dichotomy between the Balkans and the 'West' (Balkan peoples are white, and largely Christian). The first chapter provides an extremely useful and informative exploration of the origins of the very word Balkan and the geographic area it was/is meant to designate over the years. The following chapters provide a historical survey and critical analysis of how the Balkans were defined and perceived, mainly by outsiders, but also by the peoples of the Balkans. There is also a much-needed critique of the concept of Central Europe which first emerged during the early 1980s. Perhaps the only shortcoming involves Todorova's frequent emphasis on her native Bulgaria and her apparent lack of expertise in relation to Yugoslavia; thus, discussion of the entire Balkans vs. Europe debate in places like Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Slovenia is completely ignored. Even more surprising is the complete lack of critical treatment of Rebecca West's "Black Lamb and Grey Falcon," perhaps one of the central texts of 20th century 'Balkanism.' Nevertheless, "Imagining the Balkans" is a valuable, thought-provoking and fascinating book - one of the most important, although implicit points Todorova seems to make is that it is generally pointless, illogical and often ludicrous to imbue geographic/regional locations with a number of value-ridden stereotypes and cultural, 'civilizational' designations, even as people constantly need to create such categories.

As a longtime student of Ms Todorova's (I was under her tutelage for about four years and still correspond with her today), I found this book to be an excellent synopsis of her personal and professional opinions and anecdotes concerning the Balkans. It was like taking my class notes and one-on-one discussions, sifting out the dates, places and events and putting a binding on them. All of her cultural theory regarding this singular region of the world is evident in the pages of Imagining the Balkans. I would suggest a thorough knowledge of Edward Said's Orientalism and at least a cursory reading of Foucault's works before jumping into this work. Maria shows little mercy for the uninitiated and this tendency become all too evident in her most recent work. For students of Balkan history, ethnocentrism, culture clashes and human nature, this work is both compelling and fascinating. This book should not be your introduction to the politics of the Balkans because it teaches us more about how those of us in the West (especially historians, political scientists and travelers) view ourselves using the mirror of the "Other."

Although very dated at this point, with no consideration given to the crucial 1995 military operations in Croatia and then Bosnia and the ensuing Dayton Accords in a revised and updated edition, "Balkan Tragedy" is still a somewhat useful source because it provides considerable in-depth analysis of the underlying economic and structural causes of Yugoslavia's break-up. Woodward also tries to broaden the scope of her analysis to consider the ways in which the wider international context influenced events in the former Yugoslavia and even fomented their intensification. However, while this approach does clarify many events that occurred after the wars in Croatia and Bosnia had already begun, Woodward does not quite succeed in providing completely credible explanations for the actual origins of the Yugoslav crisis. Despite the hefty text, extensive research and copious footnotes, one can't escape the feeling that Woodward's approach is at times piecemeal (to paraphrase her former boss, the tragicomical Yasushi Akashi), primarily when dealing with the international players (from the IMF to the EU and U.S. State Department) who she insists bear a great deal of the responsibility for the Yugoslav tragedy. For while she often provides detailed explanations of the political and economic factors and pressures at play within the former Yugoslavia and their impact on decision-making and political events (which often seems to exonerate the various Yugoslav leaders of their culpability for concrete abuses of power and war crimes), she does not similarly analyze the economic/structural aspects and motivations guiding the foreign policies of the various outside powers which could have and eventually did influence Yugoslav events - even though her approach would seem to demand such consideration. Regardless of the degree of complicity of international players in the Yugoslav tragedy (and it was great), the prime responsibility for the political breakdown and course of Yugoslavia's dissolution lies with the various post-Yugoslav leaders (some more than others). After all, they made the decisions on how to respond to and/or manipulate international (primarily economic) pressures and domestic (often nationalistic) tensions, and this is not made sufficiently clear in Woodward's book.

The book sometimes hides its thesis behind detail, and is not easy to follow. It was finished for the press before the Croat offensive of Spring 1995, and loses some perspective in consequence. Hence only four stars! It is very thoroughly researched (not just full of footnotes), and it is one of the very few books on the Bosnian war which doesn't simply pick heroes and villains - which has, of course, led to it being denounced as pro-Serb. Woodward's main line is that the basis of conflict was 'the economy, stupid'. Successive blunders in the terms of IMF loans, and misjudged changes in the federal constitution, set the constituent republics against each other. Misunderstanding of the issues (and German/Austrian favouritism to Balkan clients) led the European powers into grossly unprincipled and utopian interventions. The federation was levered apart, while preserving intact the constituent republics. This was a 'solution' to the wrong set of problems. The United States, continually encouraging the Bosnian Muslims to wait for the NATO fairy to rescue them (it didn't), completed the sorry work of war-making - though this last element is better documented elsewhere (e.g. in Rose's _Fighting for Peace_). I don't agree with all of the author's opinions. In particular, I think national allegiances run deeper and history is more relevant than she wants to believe. But it is a serious attempt to rescue this piece of contemporary history from self-indulgent moral one-upmanship and propaganda saturation. If only Woodward could write as well as Ivo Banac!

Excellent, balanced, credible and more importantly- SCHOLARLY analysis of the Balkan conflicts. Woodward's in-depth study blows away the simplistic answers other writers have offered to solving the extremely complex problems in the region. A good critique of current US foreign policy in the former Yugoslavia. Can't wait for her next book!

Misha Glenny, a longtime observer of matters Balkan who is blessed with knbowledge of the local languages, has written this impressionistic yet brilliant portrayal of the beginning of the Yugoslav crisis in the early 1990s.

Critics of "The Fall of Yugoslavia" shoot at this book due to the fact that it is opinionated, and that it does not focus on the entire period. These criticisms are, however, inapposite. The book focuses on the period that it covers -- the descent into war. It was never intended to focus on the outcome of these wars, and criticising it for that reason is inappropriate. Similarly, the charges of bias are inappopriate as well. Glenny is neither pro-Serb nor anti-Serb, pro-Croat nor anti-Croat. In a complex conflict laced with villains on all sides, Glenny's courageous effort to avoid portraying things in "black and white" is hardly a sign of bias, but rather a refreshing sign of realism in journalism. Rather than succumbing to the tendency in the Western media of demonizing one party to the conflict in toto, Glenny presents a more nuanced picture -- which is admittedly more complex, but certainly closer to the truth.

Glenny's work is strengthened by his fluid writing, his lucid skills of description and analysis and his balanced viewpoint. One feels as if one were there with Glenny, which is at times rather frightening. Together with Brian Hall's "The Impossible Country", this book excels in its ability to give one the sense of what it was like to be there as Yugoslavia slid into oblivion.

Other good compliments to this book include the chronologically arranged "Yugoslavia: Death of a Nation" (jammed with as many facts as you can bear) and Glenny's recent magnum opus history of the region "The Balkans".

Misha Glenny is an expert on the wars in ex-Jugoslavia. An Englishman, and a speaker of Serbo-croat, Glenny takes his reader through the mess that was the Yugoslav civil war, with eyewitness accounts that display both humanity and at other times extreme brutality. One thing in particular I must commend Glenny on is his refusal to classify the Serbs as the only bad guys, or the only instigators of the war (as much Western media has done). He places blame on various players: Milosevic, Serb paramilitaries, Bosnian politicians, Franjo Tudman and his nationalitic cronies, Germany, etc... This book invokes great sympathy in its readers for all the victims of the war:Muslims, Yugoslavs, Serbs, and Croats. He usually carefully distinguishes between the Serb-dominated Yugoslav Army and the nationalistic Serb new-Chetnik gangs who were the primary brutes involved in civilian atrocities; an important distinction. However, if you do not already have a general knowledge of the region's history, this book may at times be a bit confusing. Although many of his statements on Kosovo are innacurate, I don't find that to be highly relevant to the overall book. Highly recommended!

Glenny's book is THE authoritative work on the civil war in the former Yugoslavia. Having read the book over 5 years ago, I still see some of the things he described in the book as a valuable prediction of the events that are currently taking place in the Balkans. It was Glenny who, writing about Centrex in 1995, anticipated the deep divide in the Republika Srpska leadership that would take place in 1997 (and continue until today) over war profiteering. It was Glenny who, writing about his visit to Kosovo in the early '90s, correctly anticipated the horrific showdown of international proportions that would occur there in the late '90s. And it was Glenny who, writing about FYROM, probably has predicted the next Balkan flashpoint. This book is a definite MUST READ for any person seeking to understand the intricate historical animosities that pervade the Balkans and continue, to date, to influence the lives of the people of Central and Southeastern Europe.

A book that needs to be read, if only for the shedding of light on Croatian history, which for too long was hidden or re- written by others. Putting aside his conclusions to the recent war, which seem to arose most criticism, he has written an even handed history of Croatia since early times, although sometimes he fails to place Croatia in its historical context, as a small nation in the greater general upheavals of Europe. Even so, Tanner has relied on many varied sources, not just myths created since the Second World War by both Western and East European historians, which many Western historians are now acknowledging as myths, half tuths or deceptions, of which Tanner is one.

Tanner is neither a Croatian nor an academic, and this limits the book in both understanding and the depth of its research. And yet, the book is successful all the same. It is a quick and accurate overview of Croatia's long and complicated history. Useful for those new to the region and its issues. Some of Tanner's conclusions (particularly those for the most recent events) are decidedly pro-Croat nationalist (unabashed support for Tudjman and the HDZ), and the still-important WW2 events are not carefully considered. But overall, it is a good, if simple book. You may want to complement it with Goldstein's history as well.

Anyone interested in going beyond the standard media sound byte to understand the history of Croatia, will find Tanner's book an invaluable resource. Tanner chronicles in detail the long history of the Croatian people and emergence of the Croatian state, including the birth and shaping of national identity, personalities, myths and changing political panorama. While most works on the subject deal with specific, disjointed time periods of Croatian history, Tanner provides an insightful and comprehensive account - complete with references and facts rarely found in other sources. An enlightening read about a surprisingly complex nation and its turbulent path through the historical landscape.

The greatest falsification of history is finnaly demystified.By reading this book,everybody can learn truth about glorious history of Macedonians and painfull aspects of their denial by Athens.Ancient Macedonians were not Greeks-it is adoption of certain Greek customs that was cherished by Hellenophilic historians as prove of their Greek belonging,but that is just as logical as saying that James Joyce was Greek because he is author of book named "Ullisius".Here,all important aspects of Macedonian History are blended into coherent and extremely well documentated essay-this book will leave speachless anybody who dares to falsify Macedonian history with its power of arguments.

This book examines all aspects of the dispute between Macedonia and Greece ranging from ancient history to the present. John Shea analyzes such topics as the Greek government's refusal to recognize its large ethnic Macedonian minority, the Greek myth of ethnic purity, and the Republic of Macedonia's struggle for international recognition. This is yet another example of a non-Macedonian author being able to conduct research and come to his own conclusion that Greek claims about Macedonia simply are not valid. Highly recommended for people searching for a non-biased examination of Macedonia.

Thanks to the author many facts unknown to the wider audience related to Macedonia, its history and the Macedonians are finally revealed. The author takes trip back in time, 2000 years ago to start his book with the relations of Macedonia and Greece at that time. Mr. Shea goes through the centuries and unveils many things from the sad Macedonian history : supression, genocide and expulsion. The book concludes with the modern relations of Macedonia and its neighbors, as well as with the sad situation of the Macedonians in the neigboring countries. Must read book.

Tim Judah is a journalist who has lived in Yugoslavia and has had plenty of time to observe that country's disintegration and the subsequent wars in Croatia and Bosnia. This book is his attempt to explain why these wars took place and what the results were to both Serbia and the rest of the former Yugoslavia.

I was a bit intimidated at first by this book. I've taken a class on Balkan history (which wasn't very good) but didn't think I was well prepared to dive into dense explanations of Serbian history. I'm much more familiar with Albanian history, which does overlap with Serb history somewhat, but not enough to make me an expert on Yugoslavia. I had no need to worry, as Mr. Judah made this book easy to follow. He keeps the information flowing and only focuses on major figures, which helps keep events in perspective. I would expect that even someone with zero knowledge of the region would be able to keep pace with this book.

Judah's main argument is that the wars in fractured Yugoslavia aren't due exclusively to nationalism, but mostly to greedy, powerful politicians that are exploiting the Serbian people to make themselves wealthy. Judah does acknowledge that the Serbian people have a long history of nationalistic tendencies, and he explains this tendency in some detail in the first part of the book. This nationalism was carried down through time by the Serbian Orthodox Church,which acted as both a preserver of culture and a bulwark during the long occupation of Serbia by the Ottoman Turks. Judah also shows how Serbian epic poetry that retold the tales of Serb martyrs Milos Obilic and Prince Lazar reinforced the idea of the Serbian people as victims who would one day receive their just rewards. Politicians such as Slobodan Milosevic and Radovan Karadzic used this victimhood to launch wars against Croatia and Bosnia. Behind the scenes, politicians, in league with mafia-type gangs, were looting the country. Judah even reveals that some Serb military officers were selling weapons to the enemy during these fierce wars.

Judah is at his best when he is describing the Bosnian Serb government in Pale during the Bosnian war. He shows how ineffective they were in conducting a war, and also how corrupt they were. He also exposes the atrocities that were committed by Serbian militias that detained Muslims in camps and carried out mass executions.

I had several problems with this book. First, Judah has a definite bias against the Serbs. Judah sees the Serbs as the major destructive force behind all of the conflicts in the region. But the Serbs weren't operating in a vacuum. Croatians and Muslims also committed atrocities and should be held in equal contempt if one wants to start throwing human rights charges about. Also, Mr. Judah doesn't seem to grasp the concept of war very well. War is an ugly thing, and atrocities are always committed by everyone involved. That's why it's called war. Also, war profiteering always occurs during a conflict. The Serbs by no means have a lock on this particular bit of unpleasant behavior. To try and paint them as such is irreponsible, in my opinion. Also, Judah heaps much scorn on Sonja Karadzic. Judah says that she hurt the Bosnian Serb cause by refusing journalists access to areas the journalists wanted to see. This is an error. Sonja didn't hurt the cause. The journalists did. This is a standard media trick. When the media doesn't get what they want, they throw a fit and the next thing you know, they start smearing people. In the final analysis, it's important to remember that the vast majority of Serbs only want to live and raise their families like everyone else. If anything, Judah proves the old truth that it is always politicians that start wars, and it is the people who suffer from them. Finally, I wish this book had better maps! The ones that are included aren't sufficient. Hopefully, future reprints will repair this deficiency.

I really shouldn't bash the book too much, though. It inspired me enough to go out and by a biography on Tito. I'd also like to read Judah's book on Kosova. I recommend this book for its reader friendly, if somewhat misguided, introduction to Serbia and her wonderful people.

Judah has captured the pathos of Serbia without all the cliche reference to genocide and wanton murder which so many people who call themselves historians like to use to simplify their subjects for Western readers. This is an insightful work, and the author has done his homework. He does not come down with his own personal agenda, but simply relates with powerful clarity the history of Serbia/Yugoslavia from 1389 to the present. I have not encountered a more thorough, accurate, well-written, and sensitive account of the history of this region. He has found the courage to thoroughly explain the painful past in a manner which serves to give the Serbs human faces and hearts. Absolutely a must read for anyone who is unfamiliar with the region, or who is tired of hearing the black and white rhetoric on CNN.

It seems as though anyone that raises a voice against Serbian propaganda is immediately branded a racist anti-orthodox zealot. This is certainly what's happened with Mr. Judah and it is just as certainly false. Mr. Judah does a good job of presenting the facts about the Serbian history and mentality. Like many prominent historians and journalists he draws the conclusion that the conflicts in the Former Yugoslavia were caused by two factors: 1. A leadership that preyed on it's own people to advance it's interests. 2. A population that has been spoon-fed so much revisionist history and propaganda that it is incredibly malleable and suffers from a martyrdom complex. To see many of the points in this book illustrated by time and history read Mr. Judah's next book, Kosovo: War and Revenge.