Synopses & Reviews
Here is the definitive history of contemporary Europe, a controversial but authoritative and lively narrative that is destined to become the standard account of the period from 1914 to the present. In this superb volume, esteemed historian Bernard Wasserstein offers the first serious, full-length history of a century of convulsive change. It is a history of barbarism and civilization, of cruelty and tenderness, of technological achievement and environmental blight, of imperial expansion and withdrawal, of authoritarian repression and of individual rebirth. Wasserstein provides both a narrative of the main contours of the political, diplomatic, and military history and an analysis the underpinnings of demographic, economic, and social developments. Drawing on the latest scholarly findings, including recent disclosures of intelligence materials and archival revelations that followed the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe, Wasserstein captures the essence of contemporary European history in an engaging narrative that is by turns grim, humorous, surprising, and enlightening.
Review
"A very impressive historical synthesis. Wasserstein has a lovely brisk, dry style that keeps the pages turning. He is also a fine storyteller: His accounts of the great military and diplomatic set-pieces are not just well researched and thoughtful but fast-moving and exciting. As narrative histories of the last century go, this is as good as it gets."--Dominic Sandbrook, Literary Review
"A rare gem of contemporary scholarship.... A tour de force."--Publishers Weekly
"An admirable work of scholarly synthesis, which should be required reading...for anyone absorbed by the perplexing century we recently left behind.... Enjoyable as well as compelling."--Geoffrey Wheatcroft, The Spectator
"A comprehensive yet readable narrative that blends arresting detail with well-considered generalizations."--David Cesarani, Jewish Chronicle
"Wasserstein displays encyclopedic knowledge of his subject but has written far more than an encyclopedia.... His authoritative account of Europe's highs and lows over the past century will give readers everything they need."--Foreign Affairs
"A rich and broad-ranging synthesis... the book has a pleasing density and balance. Numerous plums enrich an always fluently written and insightful text that artfully conceals the amount of material that has been synthesized."--Mark Mazower, Times Literary Supplment
"Eloquent, exhaustive and highly learned, this book is both a considerable achievement and an enlivening read...a highly competent and impressive book."--John Bew, Times Higher Education Supplement
"By turns grim, humorous and surprising, this is a fascinating sweep of the century, covering war, politics, and social, cultural and economic change."--Belfast Telegraph
"A thoroughly engaging read, and one that is to be highly recommended." --The Journal of Modern History
Synopsis
The twentieth century in Europe witnessed some of the most brutish episodes in history. Yet it also saw incontestable improvements in the conditions of existence for most inhabitants of the continent--from rising living standards and dramatically increased life expectancy, to the virtual elimination of illiteracy, and the advance of women, ethnic minorities, and homosexuals to greater equality of respect and opportunity.
It was a century of barbarism and civilization, of cruelty and tenderness, of technological achievement and environmental spoliation, of imperial expansion and withdrawal, of authoritarian repression--and of individualism resurgent.
Covering everything from war and politics to social, cultural, and economic change, Barbarism and Civilization is by turns grim, humorous, surprising, and enlightening: a window on the century we have left behind and the earliest years of its troubled successor.
About the Author
Bernard Wasserstein is Harriet and Ulrich Meyer Professor of History at the University of Chicago.
Table of Contents
1. Europe at 1914
2. Europe at War 1914-1917
3. Revolutionary Europe 1917-1921
4. Recovery of the Bourgeiosie 1921-1929
5. Depression and Terror 1929-1936
6. Europe in the 1930s
7. Spiral into War 1936-1939
8. Hitler Triumphant 1939-1942
9. Life and Death in Wartime
10. End of Hitler's Europe 1942-1945
11. Europe Partitioned 1945-1949
12. West European Recovery 1949-1958
13. Stalin and His Heirs 1949-1964
14. Consensus and Dissent in Western Europe 1958-1973
15. Europe in the 1960s
16. Strife in Communist Europe 1964-1985
17. Stress in Liberal Europe 1973-1989
18. The Collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe 1985-1991
19. After the Fall 1991-2007
20. Europe in the New Millennium
Notes
Bibliography
Index