and Balkan Europe
by IECOB & AIS Università di Bologna
This area collects information about a wide range of books, monographies and edited volumes concerning the countries and themes relevant to PECOB
The Fall of Yugoslavia: The Third Balkan War, Third Revised Edition
by: Misha Glenny
published by: Penguin Books; Revised edition (September 1, 1996)
pp: 336
ISBN: 0140257713
price: 22$
The fall of Yugoslavia tells the whole, true story of the Balkan Crisis—and the ensuing war—for those around the world who have watched the battle unfold with a mixture of horror, dread, and confusion.
When Croatia and Slovenia declared their independence in June 1991, peaceful neighbours of four decades took up arms against each other once again and a savage war flared in the Balkans. The underlying causes go back to business left unfinished by both the Second and First World Wars.
In this acclaimed book, now revised and updated with a new chapter on the Dayton Accords and the subsequent U.S. involvement, Misha Glenny offers a sobering eyewitness chronicle of the events that rekindled the violent conflict, a lucid and impartial analysis of the politics behind them, and incisive portraits of the main personalities involved.
Above all, he shows us the human realities behind the headlines, and puts in its true, historical context one of the most ferocious civil wars of our time.
About the Author
Misha Glenny is a distinguished journalist and historian. As the Central Europe Correspondent first for The Guardian and then for the BBC, he chronicled the collapse of communism and the wars in the former Yugoslavia. He has won several major awards for his work, including the Sony Gold Award for outstanding contribution to broadcasting.
The author of three books on Eastern Europe and the Balkans - The Rebirth of History, The Fall of Yugoslavia, The Balkans; his latest book McMafia is about international organised crime.
He has been regularly consulted by the US and European governments on major policy issues and ran an NGO for three years, assisting with the reconstruction of Serbia, Macedonia and Kosovo.
Reviews
The "bestiality" of what Glenny calls the Third Balkan War "springs the boundaries of moral comprehension," but our understanding of the Yugoslav civil war is aided by these two excellent works of reportage. They convey sensitively, vividly, and fairly completely the roots of this savage conflict. And both books do well what good journalism on the subject should do best: depict the human texture and political insides of Yugoslavia's "terminal crisis." Glenny, a well-known European journalist, presents a rich picture of "the rotten ship of Yugoslavia," tracing the conflict from 1990 to mid-1992. He conveys well aspects of the conflict we hear little of and warns of problems yet to be faced: Kosovo, Macedonia, and Turkish ambitions. British journalist Thompson presents an insightful report, reflecting his travels through Yugoslavia's republics and providing a nuanced exploration of the country's collapse. Unfortunately, his discussion of Macedonia reads as an afterthought, too little for an area that could well set another fire ablaze. Both books are recommended for academic and larger public libraries. See also Branka Magas's The Destruction of Yugoslavia, reviewed below.
- Henry Steck, SUNY Coll. at Cortland
PECOB: Portal on Central Eastern and Balkan Europe - University of Bologna - 117, c.so della Repubblica - Italy
