Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945

FINALIST FOR THE PULITZER AWARD A magisterial and acclaimed history of post-war Europe from Germany to Poland from Western Europe to Eastern Europe selected as one of New York Times Ten Best Books of the Year Europe in 1945 was drained. Much of the continent was devastated by war mass slaughter bombing and chaos. Large areas of Eastern Europe were falling under Soviet control exchanging one despotism for another. Today the Soviet Union is no more and the democracies of the European Union reach as far as the borders of Russia itself. Postwar tells the rich and complex story of how we got from there to here demystifying Europes recent history and identity of what the continent is and has been.‘It is hard to imagine how a better - and more readable - history of the emergence of todays Europe from the ashes of 1945 could ever be written…All in all a real masterpiece’ Ian Kershaw author of Hitler Review Most impressive...Postwar Tony Judts magnificent history of Europe after The Second World War covers vast tracts of ground with extraordinary skill weaving together the stories of West and East in a single compelling narrative ―Evening Standard Books of the YearMasterly and exhilarating... Judt has a fine eye for telling detail... This is a splendid book to which no review can do proper justice -- Geoffrey Wheatcroft ―SpectatorTruly superb - a magnificent achievement. It is hard to imagine how a better - and more readable - history of the emergence of todays Europe from the ashes of 1945 could ever be written; I cant think of another work on the latter half of the 20th century that comes close to matching it... All in all a real masterpiece -- Ian Kershaw author of HitlerA superb work of synthesis analysis and reflection ―Times Literary Supplement Books of the YearWithPostwar... Judt moves up into the ranks of the grand simplificateurs. He dares to expound the sum total of Europe since 1945 in a seamless narrative... This is history-writing with a human face as well as with brainpower... It is most unlikely that Judts achievement will be superseded soon ―Guardian About the Author Professor Tony Judt was a frequent contributor toThe New York Review of Books theTimes Literary Supplement the New Republic the New York Times and many other journals in Europe and the US. His books includeIll Fares the Land Reappraisals: Reflections on the Forgotten Twentieth Century andPostwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 which was one of theNew York Times Book Reviews Ten Best Books of 2005 the winner of the Council on Foreign Relations Arthur Ross Book Award and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. He died in August 2010 at the age of 62.