After the Russians: Eastern Europe Joins the West, by Donald Read Shanor and Constance Collier Shanor

English
Published by: Xlibris
2003, 363 pages

The Balkan states have turned out to be an even more mysterious part of the world than the Orient or the Middle East, but one whose turmoil has, and will continue to have, worldwide effects. Reading "After the Russians, Eastern Europe Joins the West," by Donald Read Shanor and Constance Collier Shanor, opens a new window on the difficult lives of the people of seven countries, former members of the Soviet Bloc: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and East Germany.

We in the West might assume that getting out from under Communist Russia was a good thing. But it has been a very mixed blessing, with these seven nations now free to quarrel bitterly with each other and their citizens often at desperate odds within them.

For their book the Shanors, with years of experience studying Eastern Europe, have revisited towns and cities the average reader may never have heard of, and talked to the people about their daily lives and problems. The authors know their history and recount it in detail as it has influenced the present. In this, "After the Fall" is a valuable resource for students and scholars.

The human element is brought to life in interviews with ordinary people--often not named, for their own protection, on matters such as living standards, environmental damage, crime, education, culture and public health, and in discussions with editors, journalists and officials who can be named. The writing is particularly moving concerning the Roma (Gypsies), whose tragic past and present are hardly known in the West, and whose situation cries out for recognition from people in the wider world who are deeply concerned with human rights. The situation of the Jews, past and present, in these seven nations is also considered, though this history is better known.

Many readers might have appreciated a map or maps showing the location of the more obscure cities and areas are, i.e., Zgorzelec, in Poland; Szeged in Hungary; or Zlin in the Czech Republic. Phonetic aid to pronounciation of place and personal names would have helped the linguistically challenged use and remember them.

"After the Russians" is logically ordered, smoothly written, neither simplistic nor stuffy. It tells a true story that is a fascinating narrative; it may provoke readers to action where human rights are being ignored or abused.