The Curtain and the Wall
A Modern Journey Along Europe's Cold War Border
Published on 7. September 2023
Book
Paperback/Softback
480 pages
978-1-78378-578-0 (ISBN)
Description
An epic journey across 5,000 kilometres and through eight decades, to tell a new story about the old Cold War faultlines
With the fall of the Berlin Wall, it seemed that the old divisions between East and West had been consigned to history. But with tensions once again rising, the past has much to tell us about our present. Here Timothy Phillips undertakes a fascinating journey along the full length of the former Iron Curtain, from the Arctic Circle to Turkey's eastern border, to meet the people who bore witness to this tumultuous era and those who continue to live in its shadow.
'A first class analysis of Cold War history' Sunday Independent
'[Phillips] visited strange places that very few people have ever heard of but which were vitally important in the east-west divide... Phillips is a good observer... [with] excellent powers of narrative' Sunday Times
'Narrated with energy and aplomb... Phillips has a good ear for historical anecdotes and writes with empathy and acuity about the people and places he encounters' Times Literary Supplement
With the fall of the Berlin Wall, it seemed that the old divisions between East and West had been consigned to history. But with tensions once again rising, the past has much to tell us about our present. Here Timothy Phillips undertakes a fascinating journey along the full length of the former Iron Curtain, from the Arctic Circle to Turkey's eastern border, to meet the people who bore witness to this tumultuous era and those who continue to live in its shadow.
'A first class analysis of Cold War history' Sunday Independent
'[Phillips] visited strange places that very few people have ever heard of but which were vitally important in the east-west divide... Phillips is a good observer... [with] excellent powers of narrative' Sunday Times
'Narrated with energy and aplomb... Phillips has a good ear for historical anecdotes and writes with empathy and acuity about the people and places he encounters' Times Literary Supplement
Reviews / Votes
An account not only of how the Cold War frontiers were drawn, guarded or penetrated by brave escapers, but - more importantly - of how often they were rendered discreetly porous by all kinds of compromise ... fascinating -- Neal Ascherson A brilliant book, not only based on an inspired idea, but also written with a keen eye for human hopes, fears and tragedies. ... full of surprises -- William Hague [Phillips] visited strange places that very few people have ever heard of but which, nevertheless, were vitally important in the east-west divide... [He] can be very funny... Yet Phillips can also be sombre... Excellent * Sunday Times * Phillips has a good ear for historical anecdotes and writes with empathy and acuity about the people and places he encounters... These individual stories are narrated with energy and aplomb * TLS * At a time when we seem to be entering a new Cold War, here's a book on the hangover from the original one... [Phillips] travels from the Arctic Circle to Turkey's eastern border, tracing the history of the Iron Curtain and meeting the people who live with its legacy * Deskbound Traveller * An engaging blend of travel, history and politics, with much resonance for today * Bookseller * A first class analysis of cold war history... well researched * Sunday Independent *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 197 mm
Width: 128 mm
Thickness: 30 mm
Weight
312 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78378-578-0 (9781783785780)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Previous edition
Book
10/2022
Granta Books
€44.80
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Person
Timothy Phillips is the author of The Secret Twenties: British Intelligence, the Russians, and the Jazz Age (Granta, 2017) and Beslan: The Tragedy of School No. 1 (Granta, 2008). He grew up in Northern Ireland and now lives in London. He holds a doctorate in Russian from Oxford University and has written and spoken widely on British and Russian history.