Description

‘Impossible to put down’ Observer
‘One of the great books of the century’ Times Literary Supplement

Rebecca West’s epic masterpiece not only provides deep insight into the former country of Yugoslavia; it is a portrait of Europe on the brink of war. A heady cocktail of personal travelogue and historical insight, this product of an implacably inquisitive intelligence remains essential for anyone attempting to understand the history of the Balkan states, and the wider ongoing implications for a fractured Europe.

Publisher Review

Written with a fierce intelligence that any journalist must envy and admire * * Daily Telegraph * * Dame Rebecca, the finest reporter of her generation, saw everything . . . A remarkably easy read * * Sunday Telegraph * * You will search in vain for a more original, assured and companionable guide to former Yugoslavia * * Financial Times * * Rebecca West's magnum opus . . . one of the great books of our time * * New Yorker * * Such incandescent writing - you find yourself wanting to mark every sentence in order to go back and relish it again -- BRIAN ENO It is a brilliant antidote to the disease that would have us believe that these are faraway countries about which we know nothing * * Guardian * * It is hard to convey the flavour of a book so rich in observation, history, philosophy, political ideas and ironic humour * * The Times * * One of the supreme masterpieces of the twentieth century . . . As a book about Yugoslavia it's a kind of metaphysical Lonely Planet that never requires updating -- GEOFF DYER Impossible to put down, both timeless and of its time - a travel book and epic narrative history brimming with passion, anger, scholarship and intuition, hatred and love * * Observer * * The sheer quality and depth of the writing make it one of the great books of the century * * Times Literary Supplement * *