The Russo-Ukrainian war by Serhii Plokhy
The Russo-Ukrainian war by Serhii Plokhy is the second book I read by him. The first one was The Gates of Europe. I had high expectations from this book and not only it met them, but surpassed them too. This book, at 300 pages (excluding notes and so on), offers the best and clear explanation of the situation in russia and Ukraine, with a view of all international players who matter, including US and China.
I highly recommend it because of this. I got this book from my local library, so I imagine it is easy to find in many libraries. The paperback edition is just over £10 in UK. It’s very likely that I will buy a copy.
This is such a great book because of how much material it covers. The first half is about pre-2022, starting with a short history from medieval times to the 2000s, in about 15 pages or so. The period between 2000 and 2022 covers both russia and Ukraine, in different chapters, making very clear the differences between the two countries. It covers, swiftly but clearly, the choices in which laws were adopted, how the people reacted.
The second part of the book covers 2022 after the invasion, not only what happened on the frontlines, but also the Grain Deal brokered by Turkey. The post-invasion period covers the reaction of European leaders of the most important countries and US, China, and India. I like that he did not go into predictions and kept it simple, talking about what happened. I was very impressed by how much information was included in a book of this size and also the focus on politics, military, and culture. This is a must read, in my view.
Plokhy dedicated this book to 2 Ukrainian soldiers, Andriy and Yevhen, and also to all the soldiers who are protecting the country. Yevhen was the younger brother of a former Ukrainian ambassador to Canada. His brother sent a picture of Yevhen reading a Ukrainian translation of Plokhy’s book on American pilots based in Ukraine during WWII. Yevhen died near Bakhmut in July 2022. Andriy was Plokhy’s cousin, who also died near Bakhmut, in October 2022.
The Russo-Ukrainian war by Serhii Plokhy
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My rating: 5/5 Stars
Would I recommend it: YES!
Published by: Allen Lane
Year it was published: 2023
Format: Hardcover
Genre(s): History
Pages: 368
About the author: Serhii Plokhy is a Ukrainian and American historian. Plokhy is currently the Mykhailo Hrushevsky Professor of Ukrainian History and Director of the Ukrainian Research Institute at Harvard University, where he was also named Walter Channing Cabot Fellow in 2013. A leading authority on Eastern Europe, he has lived and taught in Ukraine, Canada, and the United States. He has published extensively in English, Ukrainian, and Russian. For three successive years (2002-2005) his books won first prize of the American Association for Ukrainian Studies.
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It’s always a treat when a book surpasses expectations. I liked your statement about keeping it simple by reporting fact and not speculating. That’s one of my peeves about network news. A good example would be the recent shooting at the Trump rally. After getting the basic details, I quite watching anything until the next day. News agencies are so eager to have the breaking story they tend to report things before checking the facts (or before the facts are even known).
Kelly recently posted…CC Spin #38
Plokhy is a Harvard professor, so he wouldn’t speculate on what would happen next. For example, it would have been difficult to imagine in early 2023 that the deliveries will be so delayed that the second counteroffensive would not be successful on land. He is a historian and talked about the history.
The news agencies seem to be very happy to talk about their high standards but never to apply them. This is in UK too, including the BBC.