Belgrade: Among the Serbs

by Florence Hamlish Levinsohn

Book Overview

A serious and persuasive questioning of the Serbs' reputation as children of darkness in the Yugoslav War, drawing upon conversations with Serbian intellectuals in their capital. "Illuminating and compelling."-John Scanlan, former U.S. ambassador to Yugoslavia (1985-1989).

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1566630614
• ISBN13: 9781566630610
• Release Date: September 1994
• Publisher: Ivan R. Dee Publisher
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.3" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

A Peek into Belgrade

I would've titled this "A Peek into Serbia" but Levinsohn's description of life in Belgrade v. the rest of more rural Serbia was a surprise to me, as was much of the material in this book. A flowing descripteur, Levinsohn transports us to the dusty but beautiful capital of the former Yugoslavia, and allows tainted Western minds to experience the life of a passionate country and culture, one quite unlike any Americans have ever experienced on paper. The politics of the novel can get complicated, especially since the book is nearing ten years old, and the speculations as to whether or not Milosevic will go to trial in the Hague are tedious to readers, since he has already been there several months. In any case, this book was terrific, and I would recommend it to anyone looking to better understand the mentality of Serbians. Her view of Serbs as "victims with a certain victim mentality" was quite refreshing when splashed against the Western view of Serbs as the guilty party of the war in Yugoslavia and it's casualties. The most appreciated part of this book was Levinsohn's desire to get to the heart of the split of Yugoslavia, and to try to lift some of the intense blame placed on Serbians. In my eyes, she has shed some light onto the matter, more than I can say CNN ever did.

You've found the right book!

I could not stop reading this great Levinsohn's work. She got the point. I felt in love with her style of writting.