This collection of over 20 essays re-evaluates the import of the revolutions of the late 1980s that sealed the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe. They seek to situate the revolutions of 1989 in both global and European history, determine how the world and especially the Soviet bloc reached the point it did in 1989, contextualize the plurality of conditions that set up communism's demise, and map out the legacy of the revolutions and communism. They argue that understanding the upheaval in the East helps us better understand enduring debates about liberalism, socialism, nationalism, civil society, and human freedom itself. The essays are organized into four major sections about the memories and legacies of 1989, moving away from the Cold War, the situation in Eastern Europe in 1989, and the aftermath of a brutal century. Specific essays consider moderate modernity and the spirit of 1989, radio free Europe in 1989, consumption and political legitimation in late communist Czechoslovakia, Ukraine's "Orange Revolution" as a carnival of anti-politics, revisiting the Ceausescu regime, and more. The contributors are a world-wide cast of academics with backgrounds in Eastern European history and politics, mass communication, the Cold War, philology, international relations, political science, public policy, and history. Distributed by Books International. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
