Tony Judt's Postwar makes one lament the overuse of the word "groundbreaking." It is an unprecedented accomplishment: the first truly European history of contemporary Europe, from Lisbon to Leningrad, based on research in six languages, covering thirty-four countries across sixty years in a single integrated narrative, using a great deal of material from newly available sources. Tony Judt has drawn on forty years of reading and writing about modern Europe to create a fully rounded, deep account of the continent's recent past. The book integrates international relations, domestic politics, ideas, social change, economic development, and culture--high and low--into a single grand narrative. Every country has its chance to play the lead, and although the big themes are superbly handled--including the cold war, the love/hate relationship with America, cultural and economic malaise and rebirth, and the myth and reality of unification--none of them is allowed to overshadow the rich pageant that is the whole. Vividly and clearly written for the general reader; witty, opinionated, and full of fresh and surprising stories and asides; visually rich and rewarding, with useful and provocative maps, photos, and cartoons throughout, Postwar is a movable feast for lovers of history and lovers of Europe alike.

A magnificent history of postwar Europe, East and West, by arguably the subject's most esteemed historian.

"This is the best history we have of Europe in the postwar period and not likely to be surpassed for many years. Judt, director of New York University's Remarque Institute, is an academic historian of repute and, more recently, a keen observer of European affairs whose powerfully written articles have appeared in the New York Times, the New York Review of Books and elsewhere. Here he combines deep knowledge with a sharply honed style and an eye for the expressive detail. Postwar is a hefty volume, and there are places where the details might overwhelm some readers. But the reward is always there: after pages on cabinet shuffles in some small country, or endless diplomatic negotiations concerning the fate of Germany or moves toward the European Union, the reader is snapped back to attention by insightful analysis and excellent writing. Judt shows that the dire human and economic costs of WWII shadowed Europe for a very long time afterward. Europeans and Americans recall the economic miracle, but it didn't really transform people's lives until the late 1950s, when a new, more individualized, consumer-oriented society began to appear in the West. But Postwar is not just a history of Western Europe. One of its great virtues is that it fully integrates the history of Eastern and Western Europe, and covers the small countries as well as the large and powerful ones. Judt is judicious, even a bit uncritical, in his appraisal of American involvement in Europe in the early postwar years, and he's scathing about Western intellectuals' accommodation to communism. His book focuses on cultural and intellectual life rather than the social experiences of factory workers or peasants, but it would probably be impossible to encompass all of it in one volume. Overall, this is history writing at its very best. Agent, Andrew Wylie. (On sale Oct. 10)" Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

While eschewing any single overarching thematic narrative in his history of postwar Europe, Judt (European studies, New York U.) does touch upon a number of more minor themes important to the common historical experience of the continent, including Europe's reduction in power and influence, the withering of master narratives of European history, the growth of the "European model" of social intercourse and inter-state relations, the inseparability of Eastern and Western European history, and the complications of the US presence in Europe. He weaves these and other themes into his narrative, which covers European political, economic, and social changes both on the continental scale and in terms of individual countries.
Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

While eschewing any single overarching thematic narrative in his history of postwar Europe, Judt (European studies, New York U.) does touch upon a number of more minor themes important to the common historical experience of the continent, including Europe's reduction in power and influence, the withering of master narratives of European history, the growth of the "European model" of social intercourse and inter-state relations, the inseparability of Eastern and Western European history, and the complications of the US presence in Europe. He weaves these and other themes into his narrative, which covers European political, economic, and social changes both on the continental scale and in terms of individual countries. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

In this magnificent, unprecedented history of postwar Europe, esteemed historian Tony Judt covers 34 countries across 60 years in a single integrated narrative, using a great deal of material from newly available sources.