Goodbye, Eastern Europe
An Intimate History of a Divided Land
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Narrated by:
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Jacob Mikanowski
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By:
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Jacob Mikanowski
About this listen
In light of Russia's aggressive 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Goodbye, Eastern Europe is a crucial, elucidative read, a sweeping epic chronicling a thousand years of strife, war, and bloodshed, from pre-Christianity to the fall of Communism—illuminating the remarkable cultural significance and richness of a place perpetually lost to the margins of history.
"Eastern Europe" has gone out of fashion since the fall of the Soviet Union. Ask someone today, and they might tell you that Estonia is in the Baltics or Scandinavia, that Slovakia is in Central Europe, and that Croatia is in the eastern Adriatic or the Balkans. In fact, Eastern Europe is a place that barely exists at all, except in cultural memory. Yet it remains a powerful marker of identity for many, with a fragmented and wide-ranging history defined by texts, myths, and memories of centuries of hardship and suffering.
Goodbye, Eastern Europe is a masterful narrative about a place that has survived being forgotten. Beginning with long-lost accounts of early pagan life, Mikanowski offers a kaleidoscopic tour of the various peoples who made Eastern Europe their home over the centuries, including the Roma, Jews, and Muslims; the great kingdoms of the medieval period; the rise and fall of the Ottoman, Habsburg, and Russian empires; the dawn of the modern era; the ravages of fascism and Communism; the birth of the modern nation-state and beyond.
A student of literature, history, and the ghosts of his own family’s past, Mikanowski paints a magisterial portrait of a place united by diversity and eclecticism, and of people with the shared story of being the dominated rather than the dominating. The result is a loving and ebullient celebration of the distinctive and vibrant cultures that stubbornly persisted at the margins of Western Europe and Russia, and a powerful corrective that re-centers not only our understanding of how the modern Western world took shape but also the ways in which Eastern Europe has evolved throughout history to become what it is today.
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Critic reviews
A Best Book of the Summer from Bloomberg
“[A] kaleidoscopic guide to Eastern Europe’s past. . . . As democracy retreats and a new war rages. . . . One must wonder if its future will resemble the vanished world that Jacob Mikanowski vividly brings to life.” —The Washington Times
“A major new work. . . . Mikanowski weaves a rich and amusing tapestry of historical anecdote and personal family history. . . . [and] aims to push back against simplistic, atavistic nationalisms which have defined the post-Communist era.” —Balkan Insight
“Goodbye, Eastern Europe traces the stories of the various peoples who have called the region home for the past thousand years, chronicling every period of war and peace, myth and truth, and glory and defeat. . . . Captivating.” —Princeton Alumni Weekly
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A Brief History of Japan
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With intelligence and wit, author Jonathan Clements blends documentary and storytelling styles to connect the past, present, and future of Japan, and in broad yet detailed strokes reveals a country of paradoxes: a modern nation steeped in ancient traditions; a democracy with an emperor as head of state; a famously safe society built on 108 volcanoes resting on the world's most active earthquake zone; a fast-paced urban and technologically advanced country whose land consists predominantly of mountains and forests.
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A Brief Review of the Book
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A Brief History of China
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Hard to take a break from it!
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In this “timely and excellent volume” (NPR) Marie Arana seamlessly weaves these stories with the history of the past millennium to explain three enduring themes that have defined Latin America since pre-Columbian times: the foreign greed for its mineral riches, an ingrained propensity to violence, and the abiding power of religion. Silver, Sword, and Stone combines “learned historical analysis with in-depth reporting and political commentary...[and] an informed and authoritative voice, one that deserves a wide audience” (The New York Times Book Review).
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Marie Arana does not Understand Economics
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By: Marie Arana
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France has influenced the course of history in Europe and the world for centuries. Considered one of the world’s most beautiful countries and home to some of the world’s most visited tourist locations, France has enthralled and fascinated the people who’ve discovered that, in many ways, the history of France encompasses both the good and bad in the human character.
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A Quick Overview of French History - Great Reader
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Good book bad narration
- By Anonymous User on 09-18-19
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In Bucharest, Romania's capital, Kaplan discovered that few Westerners were reporting on the country - one of the darkest corners of Europe during the Cold War. In an intense and cinematic travelogue, Kaplan explores the history and culture of the only country in the West where the leading intellectuals have been right-wing rather than left-wing; a country that gave rise to the dictator Ion Antonescu, Hitler's chief foreign accomplice during WWII; a country where the Latin West mixes with the Greek East, producing a fascinating fusion of cultures.
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Wrestling with History
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Founded in London in 1717 as a way of binding men in fellowship, Freemasonry proved so addictive that within two decades it had spread across the globe. Masonic influence became pervasive. Under George Washington, the Craft became a creed for the new American nation. Masonic networks held the British empire together. Under Napoleon, the Craft became a tool of authoritarianism and then a cover for revolutionary conspiracy. Both the Mormon Church and the Sicilian mafia owe their origins to Freemasonry.
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The best book about Freemasonry out there.
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Russia is a country with no natural borders, no single ethnic group, no true central identity. At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it has been subject to invasion by outsiders, from Vikings to Mongols, from Napoleon’s French to Hitler’s Germans. In order to forge an identity, it has mythologized its past to unite its people and to signal strength to outsiders. In A Short History of Russia, Mark Galeotti explores the history of this fascinating, glorious, desperate, and exasperating country.
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Wonderful short history
- By Tad Davis on 01-19-21
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European History
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Europe’s past is characterized by fighting and warfare, and it is punctuated with great works of art, philosophy, science, and technology. Even its recent history is much the same - that’s why, so much of the globe was once ruled by European monarchies. Despite all the infighting and territorial exploits, Europeans have managed to create some of the most beautiful pieces of literature, architecture, political structures, and ideas the world has ever seen.
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Highly Recommended
- By Jean Marshall on 08-06-20
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The Shortest History of China
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From kung-fu to tofu, tea to trade routes, sages to silk, China has influenced cuisine, commerce, military strategy, aesthetics, and philosophy across the world for thousands of years. Chinese history is nothing if not messy. Heroes are also villains; prosperity mingles with violence; cultural vibrancy coexists with censorship and repression. Modern China is seen variously as an economic powerhouse, an icon of urbanization, a propaganda state, and an aggressive superpower seeking world domination.
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Loved it!
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A History of the World
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From the earliest civilizations to the 21st century: a global journey through human history, published alongside a landmark BBC One television series. Our understanding of world history is changing, as new discoveries are made on all the continents and old prejudices are being challenged. In this truly global journey, Andrew Marr revisits some of the traditional epic stories, from classical Greece and Rome to the rise of Napoleon, but surrounds them with less familiar material, from Peru to the Ukraine, China to the Caribbean.
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25 hours of enjoyment
- By Mark on 04-26-13
By: Andrew Marr
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What listeners say about Goodbye, Eastern Europe
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Mark Triska
- 07-05-24
The incredible history and complexity that makes up Eastern Europe
A personal history of the complexity that make up the many nations of Eastern Europe.
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- A Person
- 11-16-23
Wonderfully Read
Great book worth your time for learning about a usually neglected area. Read well by the author.
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- David Hollifield
- 09-19-23
Enthralling
Excellent narrative weaving of multiple complex histories. A great introduction to the region. Highly recommend.
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- BARBARA SHAW GIFTS
- 07-22-23
Perhaps overly ambitious attempt to cover so much
I also preordered. The period and the scope of countries perhaps was too ambitious. There is so much detail that the broader picture gets a bit lost. I have no problem in a personal story. I think it’s the details that get overwhelming. I have great interest in the subject matter.
I think it would be better to get a professional reader. The lilt of the voice is somewhat irritating.
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- Kindle Customer
- 08-04-23
Narration distraction
The author should not have narrated his book. His delivery was so choppy it was hard to follow. So I feel I missed a lot of the story because the narration was so chopy.
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- Amazon Customer
- 09-02-23
Get a professional narrator
The author has great writing skills but poor elocution. Consequently, it was difficult to get interested in this book despite my curiosity in learning about the region. Also, there are too many anecdotes and not enough context to put things in perspective. I did stick it out till the end but it wasn't enjoyable.
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- Andy Rogers
- 10-24-23
Fantastic insights
A wonderfully historical reading about the lands and peoples of Eastern Europe.
I will listen again, likely with a physical copy to annotate as I go.
As a side note, I thought the narration was spot on. Actually slowed it from my normal 1.75x to 1.5 so I could focus more closely to the telling and specific details. No clue why people are rating the narration poorly. I found it to be perfectly, enjoyably serviceable.
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- Moonlight
- 11-03-23
Worthwhile if taken for what it is
Like some other reviewers, I eagerly anticipated this release. There just aren't enough books on Central/Eastern Europe available in (English language) audio. And like other reviewers, I was initially disappointed. I even stopped a few hours in and moved on to another book. But at least in my case, I think I just wasn't in the right head space. When I returned to it a few weeks later, I finished and enjoyed it. It's definitely not a "history" of a divided land, but it does contain many good "stories from" a divided land. Also like some others have said, the narration was a stumbling block. The author has a very "This American Life" podcast-style earnest voice, which works in shorter doses but might be improved by professional narration in longform. Still, even there, I came to appreciate the passion for the subject matter and what sounded to my ear like accurate pronunciation of names and places (though I'm no expert). Audible too often loses the latter with a voice actor. I definitely recommend if you're interested in the subject matter and enter knowing it's more intimate historical vignettes than history.
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- PFS
- 07-19-23
More His Journey Not Ours
Seems author was guided by his personal interests and family roots so the content is heavily detailed in some instances while overlooked in others. The result is a mishmash and confused portrait of Eastern Europe.
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- Reader
- 01-04-24
okay content, poor narration and editing
some pieces of the book are more informative than others, some parts are questionable (i.e.never mentioning the name of the 9th century Slavic princess even though she's featured quite a lot in the first chapter. but the narration is just really poor. and feels like zero editing.
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