Tim Judah, The Serbs. History, Myth & the Destruction of Yugoslavia
(New Haven & London: Yale University Press, 1997)
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Summary: Judah traces Serbian history from the Slav migrations to the aftermath of the Dayton Accords. Into the historical narrative he waves in contemporary observations he made as journalist in former Yugoslavia.
Evaluation: This book does not manage to the fill the gap of a lacking concise history of Serbia and Serbs. It is easily readable and journalistic in style and generally factually correct. It nevertheless offers few analyses and frequently scratches on the surface. The book is also rather unbalanced by devoting half to the 1990s and barely 150 pages to cover everything from Slav migrations to the death of Tito.
Author: Tim Judah is the Balkan correspondent for the Times and the Economist, after having worked for the BBC.
Some of the Main Points:
One of the assets of the books is also one of its problems. By very frequently tying in past events, such as the Kosovo Battle 1389 or World War Two with current responses and interpretations, he makes the book easily readable and also demonstrates the relevance of these events for contemporary developments. Judah clearly demonstrates the misuse of the past for the war and thus makes a very valid point. At the same it at time distracts from the description of the events themselves and sets this book very strongly in contemporary events, which will make the book seem outdated soon.
The quality of the book clearly lies in making Serbian history easily accessible and in offering an account of historical events which have often become half-truths, not only in Serbia itself, but also in the Western Media.
Links on Tim Judah and the book
Reviving Historical Hatred Tom Gjelten reviews Judah's book for the Washington Post and focuses on Judah's evaluation of the role of history in the recent war.