The Fragmentation of Yugoslavia : Nationalism and War in the Balkans

Rating:
Summary: The Second October Revolution
Review: Balkan history books rarely require a second edition. 'The Fragmentation of Yugoslavia' is the second edition of a tract in political science. It is interesting to compare the Tables of Content of both editions. 'Slovenia and Croatia at War' becomes 'Wars for Independence: Slovenia and Croatia', 'War in Bosnia Hercegovina' mutates to 'An Unfinished National Liberation'. The chapter 'A War against the Serbs or a US-brokered peace' vanishes altogether and another enters: 'Kosovo: National Liberation through Foreign Interventions'. He identifies four cycles of grievance-fuelled and paroxysmal national liberation wars. We are amidst the fourth, he says and offers a naive and impractical solution: plebiscites in the contested areas (Western Macedonia, Kosovo, Krajina, etc.). Exasperatingly, the author asks in an epilogue: 'National Liberations: Is there an end to them?'. With the stirrings in Montenegro and the forthcoming civil war in Kosovo, it doesn't seem so. But the author does a superb job of charting the territory with only the slightest and almost imperceptible (and inevitable) bias. Yugoslavia disintegrated on television, in bloodied frames and to vehement narration. It is a sad tale of good intentions and the road to hell, aptly told. It is a recommended and thrilling introductory text and a thorough documentation of the human folly and malice that put the noble idea of 'Brotherhood and Unity' to such a butchered end. Sam Vaknin, author of 'After the Rain - How the West Lost the East'.

Rating:
Summary: Nothing new here
Review: In his preface, the author is very forthright about his book's failings and shortcomings. Basically, he tries to point out that "The Fragmentation of Yugoslavia" has a specific focus, i.e. the development and role of national ideologies in the country's break-up, rather than providing a comprehensive account of the myriad political, social, cultural, economic and other factors involved. This might have been a really good book if he had stuck to this thesis. Instead, however, he goes way off focus, summarizing not only the history of the national ideologies, but the history of the country in general. For the pre-1990 period, he relies heavily on much more detailed and informative books by other experts (notably Dennison Rusinow, Paul Shoup and Harold Lydall among others). When dealing with the post-1990 period, the author often goes into excessive detail in recounting various political/diplomatic negotiations, initiatives, etc. and wartime events, without really tying this in to his main topic (national ideologies). The author's discussion always seem rather brief and summarized - as though he's in a hurry to get to the next important subject - although given his central thesis, some more depth would seem necessary and rather welcome. The text is also rather dry, lacking even the occasional sharp observation or enlightening anecdote to improve the narrative. In his conclusion, Pavkovic states that a possible solution to the Yugoslav conflicts could be the holding of plebiscites among minority populations (whether displaced or not) as a first step in a meaningful reconciliation process. While I appreciate the sentiment, this idea is rather utopian given past events, and the author does not explain how this could be carried out in practice. All in all, "Fragmentation of Yugoslavia" is a very unoriginal and disappointing book, and despite the author's scholarly credentials, it is just another mediocre addition to the vast body of "Yugoslav tragedy" literature.