A History of the Baltic States by Andres Kasekamp
A History of the Baltic States by Andres Kasekamp is a very short book considering it reveals the history of 3 countries: Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. With only 200 pages on the topic as the rest are notes and so on, the material is very concise. It takes a chronological view, which is expected, but as it deals with three countries that took different approaches, it can get a bit too much at points. The book offers a good insight into what happened and, at least for me, makes one want to read more.
Unsurprisingly, considering how important the last 120 years were for European history, half of the book is devoted to that period. The first period is very interesting too, with details on topics such as the northern crusades that I didn’t know about. The two world wars, the Nazi and soviet occupations, followed by finally getting independence are important and interesting and nicely presented. What happened next, with all three being accepted in EU and NATO was nicely presented. It shows that the author lives in Estonia and doesn’t have a strong western bias.
Out of the three countries, my favourite is Estonia. Their swift decisions, their Singing Revolution, and their courage to take a path that others were trying to discourage was fascinating to read. While all three are small countries and have had a similar history after WWII with the soviet occupation, they are different which makes the comparison fascinating. I highly recommend the book.
A History of the Baltic States by Andres Kasekamp
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My rating: 5/5 Stars
Would I recommend it: yes
Published by: Palgrave
Year it was published: 2010
Format: Paperback
Genre(s): History – European
Pages: 251
About the author: Andres Kasekamp was born in Toronto. He is the director of the Estonian Foreign Policy Institute and Professor of Baltic Politics at the University of Tartu, Estonia.
He graduated from the University of Toronto. In 1996 he earned a PhD in history from the School of Slavonic and East European Studies in London, which today forms part of University College London. He has been a Visiting Professor at the University of Toronto and Humboldt University, Berlin. In 2002-2005 he was the editor of the Journal of Baltic Studies.
His books include: The Radical Right in Interwar Estonia, and A History of the Baltic States.
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It’s another book that is probably too specific for my reading purposes, but I’m glad it worked well for you.
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Yes, the book is really nice, lovely written, and at 200 pages covering 3 countries, it’s fantastic. I borrowed this one, but I might buy a copy in the future.