Burn the House: The Making and Unmaking of Yugoslavia FROM THE PUBLISHER
AUTHOR BIO:
Jasminka Udovicki is Professor of Sociology at the Massachusetts College of
Art. James Ridgeway is Washington correspondent for the Village Voice.
SYNOPSIS
Burn This House is the first book in English to represent the critical,
non-nationalist voices inside the former Yugoslavia. Written primarily by
Muslim, Croatian, and Serbian journalists and historians, this collection
relies on the perspective of the people who live there to portray the chain
of events that have led to the current genocidal wars in the heart of
Europe. These essays elucidate the Balkan tragedy while directing attention
toward the antiwar movement and the work of the independent media that has
been largely ignored by the U.S. press. They show that, contrary to
descriptions by the Western media, the roots of the warring lie not in
ancient Balkan hatreds but rather in a specific set of sociopolitical
circumstances that occurred after the death of Tito and culminated at the
end of the Cold War.
In bringing together these essays, Serbian-born sociologist Jasminka
Udovicki and Village Voice Washington correspondent James Ridgeway provide
essential historical background for understanding the recent turmoil in
Croatia and Bosnia and expose the catalytic role played by the propaganda of
a powerful few on both sides of what eventually became labeled an ethnic
dispute. In her introduction, Udovicki terms the most persuasive vehicle of
such communications "ethno-kitsch" and describes such instances as the
"turbo-folk-rock" that flooded the airwaves in the mid-1980s and the slogans
chanted by fans of favorite national football clubs. The chapters that
follow illuminate the sociological complexity and unique conditions that
underlie the continuing tragedy of the former Yugoslavia.
Contributors. Milan Milosevic, Branka Prpa-Jovanovic, Stipe Sikavica, Mirko
Tepavac, Ivan Torov, Jasminka Udovicki, Susan Woodward
FROM THE CRITICS
Times Literary Supplement
A superb collection. . . . The courage, vigour and fair-mindedness which
have survived in so many Yugoslavs through years of war and hysterical
propaganda are all on display in Burn This House, by far the best book on
the conflict that I have read so far. . . . True to its subtitle, this book
gives a masterly account of the making as well as the unmaking of
Yugoslavia. . . .�-(Richard West, Times Literary Supplement)
Slavic and East European Journal
[A] solid collection of articles for non-specialists. . . .-�(Julia Mitric,
Slavic and East European Journal)
Holt Uncensored
The early chapters make the impossibly dense history of the Balkan
peninsula clear at last, while fresh insights abound about Yugoslavia�s
birth �in the chaos and blood of World War I� and about the Tito regime
during and following World II. . . . By the time we get inside the
present-day Balkans, we�ve learned how to see past the nationalistic slogans
of politically controlled media and into the kind of ethnic cleansing only
those who live there can adequately describe. . . . [Y]ou�ll know why this
war is never going to be �over.�
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING
This glorious and expertly edited, collaborative volume is one of the best
guides to understanding the Yugoslav war of 1991�1995, providing readable
historical background and balanced analyses of the war. The book would be an
ideal choice for assignment in an upper division or graduate class on
Eastern Europe.�-(Sabrina P. Ramet, HMJ School of International Studies,
University of Washington, Seattle) — Sabrina P. Ramet
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