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walkerct's review against another edition
4.0
A thoroughly accessible, well-researched, and balanced look at the history of Ukraine from the formation of the Kievan Rus to the ongoing war with Russia over Crimea and the Donbass. Reid does an excellent job of painting both a large-scale view of the progression of Ukraine from it's earliest days while simultaneously using her journalistic skills to provide eyewitness accounts of some of the most consequential events of Ukrainian history. The chapters on the horrifying consequences of the Soviet purges and subsequent induced famine, and the extremely complicated World War II conflict between Soviet forces, Nazi forces, and the Ukrainian nationalist partisan forces make for a particularly fascinating and harrowing read.
The book is nicely structured, with each chapter of the first part of the book covering a particular geographic region of the country while progressing forward in time from early history to the present day. She peppers her narrative with quotes from primary sources and contemporaneous accounts. Importantly, she doesn't take these accounts at face value, using multiple sources in an attempt to weed out truth from the inevitable exaggeration and biases of a very contentious past. There are a couple of points where I wished she had taken a more granular approach. On occasion she will describe an event in one paragraph and then jump forward a hundred or more years in the next paragraph, which left me wondering if I was missing out on certain things. Overall though she keeps the story both clear and moving forward at a good pace.
One of my favorite aspects of the book is her unwillingness to let any of the parties involved off the hook. She obviously takes the side of a free and independent Ukrainian state over a Russian-controlled one. However, she does not turn a blind eye to a free Ukraine's many faults, be they corrupt politicians or the small but vocal and deeply troubling fascist and anti-Semitic wing of the nationalist movement. Ukraine's history of antisemitism and the country's unwillingness to take responsibility for it, is one of the key things I learned from reading this book.
The second part of the book provides an update on the post-Maidan history of Ukraine and its conflict with Vladimir Putin's Russia (the first part of the book was originally published in 1997). Anyone who doubts Russia's ability to use its government operatives to interfere in the politics of a other countries should really give this a read. The level of sophistication Russia commands in both brute force military intervention and dedicated misinformation campaigns is truly scary.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone seeking an accessible yet nuanced account of Ukraine's history, as well as some of its possible futures.
The book is nicely structured, with each chapter of the first part of the book covering a particular geographic region of the country while progressing forward in time from early history to the present day. She peppers her narrative with quotes from primary sources and contemporaneous accounts. Importantly, she doesn't take these accounts at face value, using multiple sources in an attempt to weed out truth from the inevitable exaggeration and biases of a very contentious past. There are a couple of points where I wished she had taken a more granular approach. On occasion she will describe an event in one paragraph and then jump forward a hundred or more years in the next paragraph, which left me wondering if I was missing out on certain things. Overall though she keeps the story both clear and moving forward at a good pace.
One of my favorite aspects of the book is her unwillingness to let any of the parties involved off the hook. She obviously takes the side of a free and independent Ukrainian state over a Russian-controlled one. However, she does not turn a blind eye to a free Ukraine's many faults, be they corrupt politicians or the small but vocal and deeply troubling fascist and anti-Semitic wing of the nationalist movement. Ukraine's history of antisemitism and the country's unwillingness to take responsibility for it, is one of the key things I learned from reading this book.
The second part of the book provides an update on the post-Maidan history of Ukraine and its conflict with Vladimir Putin's Russia (the first part of the book was originally published in 1997). Anyone who doubts Russia's ability to use its government operatives to interfere in the politics of a other countries should really give this a read. The level of sophistication Russia commands in both brute force military intervention and dedicated misinformation campaigns is truly scary.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone seeking an accessible yet nuanced account of Ukraine's history, as well as some of its possible futures.
divya5's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
baby_james's review against another edition
slow-paced
3.75
I found the first third of the book quite sluggish to get through. But it starts to make more sense once it reaches the 20th century. Don’t be afraid to skip chapters. The 2nd half is very good and worth reading.
hilmi_isa2023's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
2.5
When I bought this book,I thought it was a pure history of Ukraine. But, unfortunately, it's not. It's a history book with a mini travelogue by the author. This kind of presentation is not my cup of tea actually. However, I still recommend this book to be read especially as a catalyst for us to study further Ukraine's history and its people.
allisonnoelle's review against another edition
3.0
I wish this book would’ve had more thoughtful analysis as a whole… especially in regards to the self serving political interests that the West has in aiding Ukraine and the ways which it has actively been involved in imperialism, war, etc. in many many other countries. Also, she mentions antisemitism, homophobia, right wing nationalism, etc. in Ukraine with no analysis of how and why these forces exist whatsoever.
ridgewaygirl's review against another edition
4.0
This is a broad overview of the history, culture and politics of that large part of Eastern Europe called Ukraine. It's a fairly short book, and so it is also necessarily shallow, as it moves from the first Cossacks riding across the plains to the mid-nineties. Published well before the current war, or even the beginning of hostilities in the Donbas or the re-annexation of Crimea, it was nevertheless a good way to orient myself with the bare basics. While most of the book is a chronological look at Ukrainian history, with a side trip into the stories of Ukrainian writers and musicians, the final chapters are about subjects of interest in the mid-nineties, dealing with topics like the Chernobyl meltdown and Crimea.
Despite this being pretty much exactly what I wanted, given my near total ignorance about that part of the world, it still took me a long time to read. Ukraine was subject to the interests of the Turks, Russians and the Poles for a very long time and there were also the Cossacks riding around. Villages, especially Jewish villages, were pillaged and burnt at a disheartening rate. And between the way peasants were treated, Pogroms and the various wars that swept over the land, it's remarkable that Ukrainians have managed to forge a national identity. This was a useful book for me, and one that became more interesting in the second half, but for anyone who already has a fair understanding of the region, it would probably be a waste of time.
Despite this being pretty much exactly what I wanted, given my near total ignorance about that part of the world, it still took me a long time to read. Ukraine was subject to the interests of the Turks, Russians and the Poles for a very long time and there were also the Cossacks riding around. Villages, especially Jewish villages, were pillaged and burnt at a disheartening rate. And between the way peasants were treated, Pogroms and the various wars that swept over the land, it's remarkable that Ukrainians have managed to forge a national identity. This was a useful book for me, and one that became more interesting in the second half, but for anyone who already has a fair understanding of the region, it would probably be a waste of time.