As one of very few people in this world focusing on the political developments of Interwar (1918-1940) Estonia, the publishing of "The Radical Right in Interwar Estonia" is more than welcomed. This book by Andres Kasekamp fills an incredibly large gap in the academia of this region and the period.

The book lends an insight into a topic rarely covered, though fully topical for historians of the Europe during the turbulent Interwar period. Kasekamp makes a strong contribution to the field with comparitive studies of the Latvian and Finnish radical right movements of the period, creating a good balance for those less exposed to the history of the Baltic states during the first era of independence.

The book is by far the most detailed work to be published in English about this topic. As a researcher in this field, I thought it was about time someone tackled this topic in English. Even compared to studies in Estonian, this book breaks new ground and contributes to the study of the phenomenon of right-wing politics of the time.

Even those not familiar with Estonia would find this valuable, as it is very useful in a comparitive context. Those teaching courses on Interwar politics or radical right-wing organisations would find this book perfect for the reading list.

With Estonia slowly rejoining Europe, its history has also taken on new interest. This book fills a large gap that had existed for decades, and it is done at a top-class level. Only the relative exotic nature of the topic keeps it from being a 5-star book. However, for many of us, it's worth 6 stars.

Mel Huang Baltics Editor Central Europe Review

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."

I did not find this course to be very helpful to an absolute beginner. There is little vocabulary building, and too few practical phrases presented. I don't speak any Latvian and I am about to leave for Riga for a year. I don't expect to be able to master this language in one year's time, but I would like to be able to ease my way into the culture by being able to communicate in some basic everyday situations. For example I would like to be able to hail a taxi, order coffee, or buy grocieries.
This course attempts to instruct by having you be an outside observer to situations, rather than having you learn as a direct paricipant. Furthermore, the cassette tapes have poor sound quality which makes them a bit difficult to understand.
I did find this course somewhat useful for listening to basic pronounciation, inflection, and sentence structure. Since the number of available Latvian language courses is extremely limited, I would recommend using this course in conjunction with the Lonely Planet Baltic Phasebook to give you a more practical and useful experience.

Not a lot of ways to learn Latvian and many are out of print or in print but only in some godforsaken place. I currently live in Latvia and can tell you that although this book is not BAD! it is also not good. It drops you into very advanced grammatical concepts very early on (I think perfect tense is covered in chapter 2). There isn't a logical progression of vocabulary or concepts (wouldn't it be better to know past or present tense before perfect?). There is good inclusion of cultural information -- actual maps of riga to learn directional vocabulary, newspaper ads, excerpts from Raina or dainas. I guess when it comes down to it I wonder why I'm learning Latvian from a Brit/Aussie? I can tell you that the local University language immersion programs use the Dialogs series almost exclusively. But why can't someone get Trevor Fennel in print again? That would be the answer -- instead I have to visit the library to review his presentation of grammatical concepts.

This is a really first rate language book- and it's up to date, the grammar is covered very thoroughly (and very comprehensibly), there are lots of exercises, the cassettes are a big help (I would always recommend getting the cassettes) and the theme is refreshing, too- the dialogues involve a family of Latvian origin living in Australia that goes back to the old country to rediscover its roots after Latvia regains its independence- an interesting variation on the usual tired plots and characters employed in language books. Incidentally, for those interested in travelling to the Baltic countries, I also highly recommend "Colloquial Estonian" by the same author.

Written nearly a century ago, it's not the best book for the study of Armenian as it's spoken today. Bardakjian's book is much better.

The other reviewers of this book are correct that this is not a great grammar book for those not thoroughly familiar with the Armenian alphabet. A native Armenian speaker, I began reading this book out of curiosity rather than a desire to learn the language and probably for that reason found it a delightful and entertaining read. A good number of the words seem to me out of date. (Interestingly, the fact that this book was written before the Genocide probably explains the strange referenes to the bravery of Turkish soldiers). It is also a good book for those who want to brush up on their knowledge of grammar. However, those who are new to the language should probably stick to an easier book.

This book provides a detailed grammatical text on Armenian, eventually working up to samples of Armenian literature--an added bonus. The only problem with it is that it is extremely difficult for someone not familiar with the Armenian alphabet. The alphabet is what is first explained, but it could have been written such that each word in the Armenian alphabet be accompanied by a version in the Roman alphabet for pronunciation's sake

Another bomb from Lonely Planet. Incoherent, often wrong and poorly written. It amazes me how this company's guide books have become the most popular amongst young travellers. This one covers the entire Scandinavian region - including the baltic republics and St. Petereburg. Like most of the regional LP books, this one doesn't follow a standardised format and provides the reader with reams of useless information. How anyone is supposed to plan a trip using this book is beyond me. Garbage.

This book is obviously aimed at the budget traveler, and does its job well enough, pointing out clean and cheap places to stay, eat, and get around. It doesn't have much to offer however to those travelers who'd like to sleep and dine a notch up. It gives adequate overviews of the cities, but I found the cultural particulars lacking.It seems to have a bias toward Disney style miniature villages etc., more than major museums. Or perhaps that's just Scandanavia; I haven't been there yet, am still in the process of planning a trip this summer.

When you don't have a lot of time you want to know the outstanding sights in museums you'll visit, since you won't be able to see everything. Like most travel guides, this one will work better if you also read its competition, such as Fodors, Michelin Green, Insight in planning your trip. LONELY PLANT however, by skipping those glitzy color photos that might lure you away from home in the first place, creates a light and compact package that's sufficient for the journey, as long as you've used other guides and resources for advance planning.

Give credit to Lonely Planet for packing all of these areas together in one book. It would have been very easy to keep Iceland, Faroe Islands separate, the Baltic States separate, and a St. Petersburg city guide in a different book or just with Lonely Planet Russia.

Besides the fact that the area it covers is very comprehensive, here's why I like this book over others. Lonely Planet does a great job covering budget options for food, hostels/pensions/hotels, and activities. The city maps are extremely comprehensive. For example, there are exact points for each place to stay, place to eat, and other important landmarks (train station, post office, bus station, sights, etc.) in each city map. How easy is that! In addition, Lonely Planet is the best guide to cover how to get there, get around, and get away. I find that many guides only assume you are getting around by Eurail or bus. And unlike other guides that treat only the major cities and outlying areas (Frommers, for example), Lonely Planet is just as concerned with telling you where to find the smaller, less-crowded parts of Scandinavia and Baltic Europe (Norway's fjords, Iceland's hot springs, etc.) Without a doubt, get this book.

This book gives only one side of the story. Another side of it that most of these rebels were former Nazi soldgiers or served in German police forces. As such they were actively involved in Holocaust (Estonian officials still deny Holocaust existence on the territory of Estonia). While fighting with Soviets, "Brothers" also killed innocent citizens just to inflict the horror on them. Not to mention that the author, prime minister, came to power on the wave of nationalism and ruined an Estonian economy. It was under his leadership that political parties were able to use slogan "Estonia for Estonians".
The bottom line, this book as much politically twisted as books printed earlier by the Soviets about the guerrela movement.

Written by the current Estonian Prime Minister Mart Laar, this book gives many first-hand accounts of the Forset Brothers doomed struggle against the occupying Soviet forces in Estonia after WW2.(The Forset Brothers were groups of armed resistance fighters based in the woods of Estonia).

While some stories tell of heroic and unbelievable battles against the KGB, most are unfortunately tragic and sad stories of Soviets killing and raping innocent civilians. However these stories must be told to preserve Estonian history and to account for Stalins Holocost in the East.

Necessary reading for anyone of Estonian descent.

"War in the Woods" is a well-written and fascinating exploration of the topic of Baltic nationalist resistance to the Soviet annexation. While the book focuses on Estonia, the Latvian and Lithuanian Forest Brothers (the nickname for the Baltic rebels) are not neglected. The history, organization and tactics of the Forest Brothers are all addressed in some detail.

(btw, those interested in the ill-fated British and American attempts to aid the Forest Brothers should look at "Operation Rollback", which details the sorry history of the American anti-Soviet program of the late 1940s and early 1950s)

I learned more about the history of the Balkans in this book than I had learned in all the years of reading and TV watching before now. However, I really had to work at it.
I found myself reading and re-reading the same sentences over and over trying to figure out what the author was trying to say. Sometimes the problem was his skipping a few hundred years in narrating events, without telling you that was what he was doing. It was not infrequent to find a series of events told in a non-serial manner.
Another problem can be demonstrated with this sentence from page 86: "At dawn, two more shots shattered the evening air as the last hostages, Frederick Vyner and Count Alberto de Boyl, were each executed with a bullet to the back of the head." If you found yourself rereading that sentence wondering why you were not able to grasp its meaning immediately, you have company. There are a great many sentences and paragraphs with this kind of internal consistencey problem in this book.
The early chapters seem to have been written with some care to communicate the human aspect of the Balkan situation. However, by mid-book, the author seems to have tired of his subject, and tends to list events in catalog form. The absence of context in these situations (often even to the extent of leaving the historical timing uncertain), leaves much to be desired.
Yes, I am glad I read it. I did learn important background material from it. However, it was not the pleasure reading history usually is for me.

The book does a good job of going over the Southern Balkans conflict with the Ottoman Empire from the Greek perspective. For 500 years the author gives us a good general overview. This is for most of the book. Suddenly he goes into great detail in the the short second to last chapter about the "First" and "Second Balkan Wars". The level of detail in this chapter does not match the previous chapters. In the last chapter he skips to a few thoughts on the conflict in the 90s but offers us only a few pages. Missing entirely is the WWII and Tito's arrival on the scene. 50% of the photos depict the damage caused by NATO in the 1999 conflict over Kosovo. No photos of what the Serbs did to the Albanians are shown. Considering that only a few pages of the book were dedicated to the 1999 conflict, why so many photos and why so one sided?

The violence in this book is so appalling that it becomes almost amusing after a while.There is far more emphasis on violence than on culture. Some of the anecdotes are interesting, and nearly mythical in their dimensions, particularly the ones occurring in the 14th century--but also the stories surrounding at least two 20th Century political assassinations, stories surrounding the figure of Ali Pasha(and of the legendary Albanians who would not submit to his rule), the incredible brutality of the Turks against the Greek Orthodox Church in Constantinople during the Greek Independence Rebellion,and also against the Armenians, the story of the occupation of Constantinople during the 4th Crusade, and the like. One regularly encounters decapitations, genocide, highway banditry, and irregular armies in this book. There is also some extensive discussion of the role of Europe (and Russia) in diplomatically resolving the conflicts in the region.

7th in the series, Capt. Drinkwater's action takes place in the Baltic as Napoleon rolls up the Russians in 1807. Ostensibly carrying gold to the British ally, the Tsar, Drinkwater's cruise is episodic and nearly aimless at first, but concludes with an exciting rush under the eye of an ancient nemesis and the guns of the French. I get less of a sense of adventure and curiosity than with O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin series, whereas the larger political context of alliance building against Napoleon is clearer here. However, the shipboard world of H.M.S Antigone thereby becomes less central and important. Except for some pro forma sail handling, unfamiliar terms are rare, even the regular cursing. This Sheridan House book has lesser art, better paper, and double the price of Warner's series.

This is book 7 in the Drinkwater Series. I have previously read number 10, but the U.S. publisher has not been reprinting the books in the order they were written. To fully appreciate the book, you need to read the previous books in the series. Otherwise you will feel at points as if you have walked in on the middle of a story. In this particular episode, Drinkwater is off on a special mission to the Baltic, only to have his orders changed via a message sent through diplomatic channels in Sweden, and by the request of an agent picked up in Russia. Things are complicated by an unreliable lieutenant aboard the ship. Events lead to the diversion of a cargo of gold, and Drinkwater's participation in an intelligence gathering operation. One of Drinkwater's old enemies (from books 2 and 3) is reintroduced. Part of the plot seems a little contrived, but overall it is an interesting story.

Richard Woodman is perhaps the most underrated writer of naval action novels. His Nathaniel Drinkwater series, of which Baltic Mission is the seventh, combines realism, action, excellent characterization, and a gothic thread running through it. Drinkwater, who is a very decent man although not simplistically so, has to face various levels of human evil and depravity. Drinkwater has had three nemeses woven in and out of the series; the vile Morris from his first ship, the evil but cunning Edouard Santhonax, and his own wayward brother Edward. In Baltic Mission Drinkwater deals with two out of the three.

The time is 1807 and Napoleon has been checked but not defeated at Eylau. Only Csar Alexander of Russia is able to stand against Napoleon and Drinkwater is sent to the Baltic to provide encouragement/assistance to the Russians. However, Alexander may be tiring of his fight against Napoleon and Drinkwater must be sure that he doesn't enrich a potential enemy. A mission to find out the status of the combatants is in order. Along the way Drinkwater has to deal with his irascible First Lieutenant Sam Rogers who is descending into alcoholism.

Drinkwater is now in his 40s and suffering from his wounds. Series regulars Mr. Q. and Tregembo are back. Tregembo is now described as an old man although his age before was never specifically mentioned. I had the impression that Tregembo was a few years older than Drinkwater but he seems to have reached old age in one novel.

Much of Baltic Mission takes place on land so it doesn't have the same level of naval action that other novels in the series have although the rousing conclusion is in keeping with earlier series entries. This one is more cloak and dagger with continued gothic elements and suspense. While Baltic Mission doesn't have the same intensity as Eye of the Fleet or sense of grand tragedy as 1805 it's still an entertaining read and perhaps a bit of a change of pace. To this point there have been no bad entries in the series and given Woodman's writing ability I doubt there will be.