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In this series, which is published in partnershipt with Zed Books, historians explain how diverse nations have responded to the sweeping international changes of the past two decades. The books in this series also reveal the struggles and values that matter to ordinary people throughout the world and suggest alternative ways of thinking about world history in the context of present challenges.
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The Burdens of Freedom
Eastern Europe Since 1989
Padraic Kenny
From Estonia to Macedonia, this book is a history of fifteen countries as they negotiate their transition from communism. For some, the story ends happily, with triumphant entry into the European Union in 2004. Others are caught in limbo, destroyed by nationalist politics, war and genocide, or crippled by corrupt political practices. The Burdens of Freedom considers the effects of revolutionary change, the resurgence of nationalism and the painful examination of the past. It looks at the process… (more information)
Destination in Doubt
Russia Since 1989
Stephen Lovell
The enormously complex changes triggered by the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe were nowhere more ambiguous than in the heartland of the Soviet bloc, Russia itself. Here the population was divided on all the most fundamental questions of post-communist transition: economic reforms, the Communist Party, the borders of the state, even the definition of the Russian “nation” itself. Russians also faced plummeting living standards and chronic uncertainty. In a matter of months, Russia… (more information)
First World Dreams
Mexico Since 1989
Alexander Dawson
Mexicans have long dreamt of the First World, and in recent times it has landed there with a thud. Under the guise of globalization, Mexico opened its borders, reformed its political system, and transformed its economy. The impacts have been paradoxical. A vibrant civil society is marred by human rights abuses and violent rebellion. Market reforms have produced a stable economy, economic growth and great fortunes, while devastating much of the countryside and crippling domestic producers. Mexico… (more information)
Dictatorship, Imperialism and Chaos
Iraq Since 1989
Thabit A.J. Abdullah
This book is a concise, readable, yet rigorous narrative of the recent history of Iraq. It focuses on the transformations within the country, placing the people of Iraq at the centre of the changes that began with the invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and ended with the current American occupation. While telling the story of the country in chronological order, the book detours to explore themes such as the role of oil, the nature of Saddam Hussain’s state, the social impact of sanctions, the roots… (more information)
Living With Reform
China Since 1989
Timothy Cheek
China is huge. China is growing more powerful. Yet China remains a great mystery to most people in the West. This contemporary history, based on the latest scholarly research, offers a balanced perspective of the continuing legacy of Maoism in the lifeways not only of China’s leaders but China’s working people. It outlines the ambitious economic reforms taken since the 1980s and shows the complex responses to the consequences of reform in China today. It shows the domestic concerns and… (more information)
On the Move
The Caribbean Since 1989
Alejandra Bronfman
The Caribbean stands out in the popular imagination as a “place without history,” a place which has somehow eluded modernity. In On the Move, Alejandra Bronfman argues the opposite is true; the caribbean is, and has always been, deeply engaged with the wider world. From drugs and tourism to international political struggles, these islands form an integral part of world history and of the present, and are in a constant state of economic and social flux in the face of global transformations… (more information)
Bipolar Orders
The Two Koreas Since 1989
Hyung Gu Lynn
North Korea has experienced severe economic deterioration and increasing international isolation, while South Korea has undergone democratization and witnessed the emergence of a vibrant consumer culture. Paradoxically, this growing gap in ideologies and material standards led to improved relations between the two countries. Why has this counterintuitive development occurred? Is north Korea really a threat, and if so, for whom? Amidst the recent tendency to repackage the last embers of the cold… (more information)
Power and Contestation
India Since 1989
Nivedita Menon, Aditya Nigam
1989 marks the unraveling of India’s “Nehruvian Consensus” of a modern, secular nation with a selfreliant economy. Caste and religion play major roles in national politics. Global economic integration led to conflict between the state and dispossessed people, but processes of globalization have also enabled new spaces for political assertion. In a world of American Empire, India as a nuclear power has abandoned nonalignment, a shift contested by voices within. Power and Contestation… (more information)
Impossible Peace
Israel/Palestine Since 1989
Mark LeVine
In 1993 luminaries from around the world signed the Oslo accords, a pledge to achieve lasting peace in the Holy Land. Yet, with over a thousand Israelis and nearly four times that number Palestinians killed since 2000, the oslo process is now considered ‘history’. Impossible Peace provides one of the first comprehensive analyses of that history. Mark LeVine argues that Oslo was never going to bring peace or justice to Palestinians or Israelis. He claims that the accords collapsed… (more information)
The Throes of Democracy
Brazil Since 1989
Bryan McCann
In the 1980s, Brazil emerged from two decades of military dictatorship and embarked on an experiment in full democracy for the first time in the nation’s history. Since then, Brazilians have sought to live up to the ideals of this experiment while negotiating dramatic economic and cultural transformations. In The Throes of Democracy Bryan McCann gives a panoramic view of this process, exploring the relationships between the rise of the political left, the escalation of urban violence, the… (more information)
Between Terror and Democracy
Algeria since 1989
James D. Le Sueur
Algeria’s democratic experiment is seminal in post-Cold War history. In this book Le Sueur shows that Algeria is at the very heart of contemporary debates about Islam and secular democracy. Between Terror and Democracy is a lively examination of how the fate of one country is entwined with much greater global issues. (more information)
Angry Nation
Turkey Since 1989
Kerem Oktem
Since Turkey was catapulted back onto the world stage in 1989 it has turned into a major power broker and has developed into one the largest economies in the world. The country has, however, failed to peacefully resolve its ethnic, religious and historical conflicts. Today, as the foundations of the ethno-nationalist Kemalist state are eroding rapidly, Turkey appears to be coming to terms with the many sources of its anger, if cautiously and slowly. At this historical turning point, Turkey Since… (more information)