Eastern Europe!: Everything You Need to Know About the History (and More) of a Region that Shaped Our World and Still Does

By Tomek E. Jankowski

Eastern Europe! is a brief and concise (but informative) introduction to Eastern Europe and its myriad customs and history. 

When the legendary Romulus killed his brother Remus and founded the city of Rome in 753 BCE, Plovdiv -- today the second-largest city in Bulgaria -- was already thousands of years old. Indeed, London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna, Madrid, Brussels, Amsterdam are all are mere infants compared to Plovdiv. This is just one of the paradoxes that haunts and defines the New Europe, that part of Europe that was freed from Soviet bondage in 1989 which is at once both much older than the modern Atlantic-facing power centers of Western Europe while also being in some ways much younger than them. 

Even those knowledgeable about Western Europe often see Eastern Europe as terra incognita, with a sign on the border declaring "Here be monsters." This book is a gateway to understanding both what unites and separates Eastern Europeans from their Western brethren, and how this vital region has been shaped by, but has also left its mark on, Western Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa. Ideal for students, businesspeople, and those who simply want to know more about where Grandma or Grandpa came from, Eastern Europe! is a user-friendly guide to a region that is all too often mischaracterized as remote, insular, and superstitious.

Illustrations throughout include: 40 photos, 40 maps and 40 figures (tables, charts, etc.)


From the Trade Paperback edition.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: May 20, 2014
• ISBN: 9780985062330

Reviews for Eastern Europe!

[hvg-13 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

it gets a little dry sometimes, cannot be avoided and the author does its best to keep it going.worthwhile your time for those who are interested in how East-Europe got its shape.recommended

[knightlight777 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I was reluctant to read this book because it was so long. But some of my ancestral roots come from this area so I endured. History is not always light reading and this was no exception. However Jankowski does a pretty good job here and lightens things up with witty and interesting side topics throughout the book. Eastern Europe can be summed up as one vast battleground throughout history and unfortunately the story unfolds and marches on as one battle after another. Human nature is such that we may see this trend continue on into the future as we are currently witnessing the rumblings from Russia.

[mimal_5 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

bookshelves: history, nonfiction, e-book, food-glorious-food, published-2013, teh-demon-booze, tongue-firmly-in-cheek, autumn-2013, lifestyles-deathstyles Read from September 19 to 26, 2013 NetGalley: Steerforth Press, New Europe BooksFrom the blurb: When the legendary Romulus killed his brother Remus and founded the city of Rome in 753 BCE, Plovdiv -- today the second-largest city in Bulgaria -- was already thousands of years old.Now the stage is set for some interesting history.Dedicated to my wife,Magda,For putting up with me,and all the books.The tone is light and accessible as shown by the opening: Section I: Wherein we take a look at some of Eastern Europe's key attributes today, and get a sense for the lay of the land, as it were. So put on your rubber gloves and snap 'em on tight; we're going in.Nothing now will stop me diving in with affable Jankowski as guide...Not 'brief' in terms of page count (500) yet under terms of the sweeping subject the strapline is correct, it is a brief introduction.Joyously written with verve and panache, this is a primer of all thinks Eastern European, and that doesn't mean just Russia.*Cram packed with photographs, maps, illustrations where my favourite is near the end, a map of Europe divided into beer, wine and vodka regions. I shall try out the recipes too.Great fun, and I learnt a lot. However he beginning section on languages did get me down as it is not something I am that interested in, so it dropped a star.* One reviewer has this on just one named shelf: Russia! And that is with all the maps imcluded tsk tskCross-posted to aNobii, LibraryThing, BookLikes, Goodreads, NetGalley1 like

[thornton37814 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a highly readable history of Eastern Europe from medieval times to near the present-day. The author has done an incredible amount of research and provides the reader a look of the region as a whole and by country within that region for several periods of history. I read an e-galley version of this book on my Kindle, and there were formatting issues present in the book. Severalsentenceswereruntogetherlikethis -- often for 1.5 lines or so, making it difficult to read. There was text that was in languages other than English, but it was always translated later. One of my biggest issues with reading non-fiction in electronic book format is that end notes are not very accessible. Such was the case here. I have sometimes seen publishers who provide hyperlinks in the text to the end notes, but this one, at least in its e-galley format, did not do so. The author did insert humor into his narrative from time to time. I found his comment regarding bibliographies (with the bibliography) entertaining. The book is well-indexed. Of course, it is almost impossible to use that index in the electronic version of the book without additional formatting which was not present in the e-galley. This review is based on an e-galley provided by the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation that a review would be written.