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andra_mihaela_s's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
As a Romanian, I usually stay away from books disscussing my country and it's complicated history....but after the war next door started...I think is better to inform myself as much as possible about this area of the world so that I'm well prepared against missinformation and hate.
I saw that many foreigners tried reading this book for the wrong reasons, like "in preparation for my holiday in Romania" and other similar ones..but, I think this is most useful in times like this, when you want to understand more about a political context in the region.(for example..why a war is fought) This would blend nicely with a book about Ukraine, and another about Poland (to name a few of the countries where communism played a big role) and they will definetely give the reader reasons why things are the way they are and answers they seek in their journey of understanding Eastern Europe and it's tragic past.
I highly recomend listening to the audiobook; the style in which Kaplan wrote this piece of non-fiction is very much a mixt bag for a lot of people...a travel jurnal/ memoir/ history lesson that jumps quite a lot from place to place, fact to fact. --> so, it's better for your enjoyment to listen than read
The book is good for people that don't really know much about Romanian history(it gives multiple perspectives from inside and outside...especially when it comes to the relationship with Russia; we have different political parties represented; we have a pretty clear and accurate description of dignitaries and such from the author; and lots of historical context discussed from the perspective of important players in Romanian literature, historical and political scenes); the author is very much a FAN of our culture I must say...but quite partial to the aspects highly pushed in the cummunism...like folk culture and traditional romanian values. I don't think this is bad by any means, but be aware he's not a big fan of globalization and how that affects people...>..> So, sometimes he comes off like a fustrated old man well past his time...
I regards to the historical part of the book, although lots of impressions and memories are very much present in the first half, later on we get lots of info very much relevant to actual conflicts going on right now in 2022.(the author presents Romania from different moments in time: late 70s; early 90s, and 2014-when Russia took the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine)
I believe he summarised very well what Romania's history is(and with it,the history of this region) :<i>"Fortunate countries are heirs to empires;less fortunate ones constitute the outlining residue of such.."</i>
In conclusion, even if this book tries to make you believe that it talks about more countries than Romania...everything is compared to it and it's discussed/seen/reflected through it..so Bulgaria, Moldova,Hungary..minor players here, that serve the author's objective of showcasing something about Romanian culture/past/ways.
Some things that I want to highlight because I didn't expect them to appear here:
- nostalgic feelings about cummunism (which is very prevelant among people of a certain age, but very much hidden when on a large scale);
- very important discussions about nationalism vs communism;Marshall Antonescu vs Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej vs Nicolae Ceausescu;
- antisemitic sentiments based on Romanian nationalism and historical context around it;
-fear of future Russian aggression;
-Romania - Moldova history(including horrible moments in our history) and future;
- nothing from regular people living in this country...seriously.the author only spoke with dignitaries and such...>..>
Overall, this is a great book for the right reasons and I recommend it to people interested in understanding why is so important to fight for our freedom.(especially if you enjoy stuff like travel journals or memoirs!)
Enjoy
I saw that many foreigners tried reading this book for the wrong reasons, like "in preparation for my holiday in Romania" and other similar ones..but, I think this is most useful in times like this, when you want to understand more about a political context in the region.(for example..why a war is fought) This would blend nicely with a book about Ukraine, and another about Poland (to name a few of the countries where communism played a big role) and they will definetely give the reader reasons why things are the way they are and answers they seek in their journey of understanding Eastern Europe and it's tragic past.
I highly recomend listening to the audiobook; the style in which Kaplan wrote this piece of non-fiction is very much a mixt bag for a lot of people...a travel jurnal/ memoir/ history lesson that jumps quite a lot from place to place, fact to fact. --> so, it's better for your enjoyment to listen than read
The book is good for people that don't really know much about Romanian history(it gives multiple perspectives from inside and outside...especially when it comes to the relationship with Russia; we have different political parties represented; we have a pretty clear and accurate description of dignitaries and such from the author; and lots of historical context discussed from the perspective of important players in Romanian literature, historical and political scenes); the author is very much a FAN of our culture I must say...but quite partial to the aspects highly pushed in the cummunism...like folk culture and traditional romanian values. I don't think this is bad by any means, but be aware he's not a big fan of globalization and how that affects people...>..> So, sometimes he comes off like a fustrated old man well past his time...
I regards to the historical part of the book, although lots of impressions and memories are very much present in the first half, later on we get lots of info very much relevant to actual conflicts going on right now in 2022.(the author presents Romania from different moments in time: late 70s; early 90s, and 2014-when Russia took the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine)
I believe he summarised very well what Romania's history is(and with it,the history of this region) :<i>"Fortunate countries are heirs to empires;less fortunate ones constitute the outlining residue of such.."</i>
In conclusion, even if this book tries to make you believe that it talks about more countries than Romania...everything is compared to it and it's discussed/seen/reflected through it..so Bulgaria, Moldova,Hungary..minor players here, that serve the author's objective of showcasing something about Romanian culture/past/ways.
Some things that I want to highlight because I didn't expect them to appear here:
- nostalgic feelings about cummunism (which is very prevelant among people of a certain age, but very much hidden when on a large scale);
- very important discussions about nationalism vs communism;Marshall Antonescu vs Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej vs Nicolae Ceausescu;
- antisemitic sentiments based on Romanian nationalism and historical context around it;
-fear of future Russian aggression;
-Romania - Moldova history(including horrible moments in our history) and future;
- nothing from regular people living in this country...seriously.the author only spoke with dignitaries and such...>..>
Overall, this is a great book for the right reasons and I recommend it to people interested in understanding why is so important to fight for our freedom.(especially if you enjoy stuff like travel journals or memoirs!)
Enjoy
eldaaurora97's review against another edition
4.0
I was interested in the book because I wanted to learn more about Romania, and when I saw this in my library, I figured I might give this book a shot.
With the chapter "Nabokov's Room", in which Kaplan describes his transition from working in Israel to working in Romania, I thought it started out a bit slow, and I couldn't connect to it as well. However, his description of the books he has, "Books are an act of resistance, not just to the distractions of the electronic age, but to our problems, and to our pretensions." (xxix)
When he focuses on Romania, in which he "learned how to be a journalist in Bucharest" (10), I found the narrative to gain more focus. A main point which I noted from the book is Romania playing as a borderland of itself, and a crossing between Byzantine, Latinity, and Slavic. I found this to be quite intriguing, especially in how it could have influence, despite being considered a journalistic backwater--not only when Kaplan first entered the country, but also today.
The historical and cultural aspects are focused in between, and I liked how they were all written.
Overall, this is a good book about journalism and Romania, and I look forward to learning more about it.
With the chapter "Nabokov's Room", in which Kaplan describes his transition from working in Israel to working in Romania, I thought it started out a bit slow, and I couldn't connect to it as well. However, his description of the books he has, "Books are an act of resistance, not just to the distractions of the electronic age, but to our problems, and to our pretensions." (xxix)
When he focuses on Romania, in which he "learned how to be a journalist in Bucharest" (10), I found the narrative to gain more focus. A main point which I noted from the book is Romania playing as a borderland of itself, and a crossing between Byzantine, Latinity, and Slavic. I found this to be quite intriguing, especially in how it could have influence, despite being considered a journalistic backwater--not only when Kaplan first entered the country, but also today.
The historical and cultural aspects are focused in between, and I liked how they were all written.
Overall, this is a good book about journalism and Romania, and I look forward to learning more about it.
epictetsocrate's review against another edition
3.0
CALATORIILE ALUNGA TRISTETEA. „ASPECTUL NOU AL strazilor in fari noi. [...] Liniștea pe care par sa ne-o ofere“, nota poetul si scriitorul existentialist portughez Fernando Pessoa la începutul secolului XX. Locurile noi te fac sa le uiti pe cele vechi si astfel timpul trece mai repede. Cand am coborat din avion pe aeroportul Otopeni, am schimbat o lume puternic si intens colorata de soarele orbitor al Orientului Mijlociu cu infriguratii Balcani, care mi se infatisau ca o gravura sepia, in tonuri de noiembrie. In numai cateva ore, Israelul era deja parte a unei existence de mult apuse. Aeroportul Otopeni era o cladire de m arm ura si sticla murdara, cu politisti de frontiera in gherete saracacioase. O stea rosie si fotografia dictatorului atarnau pe peretii altfel goi. Am asteptat jumătate de ora in frig ca sa ocup un loc pe un scaun de placaj intr-un autobuz ce mergea in oras. Crengi dezgolite - de fag, plop si tei - trosneau in vantul de stepa, lovind ferestrele autobuzului si anuntand iam a in lumina m ata a dupa-amiezii, sub o bolta apasatoare de nori. Foioasele - putin intalnite in regiunea Mediteranei orientale pe care tocmai o parasisem, dar omniprezente aid - imi intareau sentimentul distantei strabatute. La fel si acoperisurile ascutite ale caselor de pe un mare bulevard, cu influenta lor nordica baroca, aflate in asteptarea zapezii.
jaclyn_youngblood's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to read about Romania, which Kaplan afforded me. He references interesting (including sometimes for their decidedly "wrong-side-of-history" assessment, in retrospect) original works of fiction and non, by Romanian authors. I particularly enjoyed the bits at the end by professors and nonprofit professionals discussing Russia circa 2014 and the role of Romania vis-a-vis the EU into the future. All of that said, I found most of his prose whiny and judgmental, even while he was claiming to be nostalgic. While I don't necessarily disagree with it being annoying to have movie posters of US films plastered in hotel lobbies in other countries, he seems to place the blame squarely on the towns themselves. Or maybe I'm just being nitpicky. I did enjoy the discussion of borders, and I certainly learned more about the various regions of today's Romania, which may help elucidate future (hopefully!) trips to the country.
sophronisba's review
4.0
An interesting overview of Romanian history, about which I knew nothing before I opened this book. Because of that, it's hard to evaluate his interpretations, but I found his observations thoughtful and illuminating.
catincaciornei's review against another edition
5.0
My review is inherently biased since I am Romanian. It's hard to imagine someone without some sort of real interest in Romania reading this book, since references to our history abound; it's remarkable to read insightful details regarding Stephan the Great, Matei Corvin, A.I.Cuza, Jassy (Iasi city) and Dobruja (Dobrogea region) written by an American Jewish geopolitical analyst and renowned journalist. Incredible level of detail, probably the best "Selected Bibliography" of Romanian studies, and a heartfelt yet scholarly unbiased view of our complex history. Remarkable.
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