120,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ

Come visit us this weekend! Our New Bookshop is open 8:30am-5:00pm Sat & Sun ๐ŸŽ‰

The Balkans

3.75 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating.
( 2,843 ratings, 271 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Balkans by Mark Mazower is a concise exploration of the complex history of the Balkan region. The book delves into the cultural, political, and social evolution of the Balkans from ancient times to modern-day, providing insights into the diverse influences and events that have shaped this historically volatile area. Through detailed analysis, Mazower challenges common stereotypes and offers a nuanced understanding of the Balkan Peninsula's role in European history.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
TEMPORARILY OUT OF STOCK Please add to wishlist to be notified when back in stock

Sorry, we're currently out of stock of The Balkans. Please add to your Wishlist and we'll send you an email as soon as it's back in stock.

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you are fascinated by the complex and turbulent history of the Balkan Peninsula. Known for delving into the intricate political, cultural, and social transformations of the region, the author provides insightful analysis and rich narrative, perfect for history enthusiasts and those interested in understanding the forces that have shaped modern Europe.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

A short history of the Balkans from the Romans to the present, which provides vital historical and cultural background to contemporary Balkan politics and offers the reader a fresh view of the region's relationship with Europe as a whole.

Part of the Universal History Series - now launced in a brand new livery To be included in the Phoenix Press Universal History Series Promotion Offers the reader a fresh view of the region's relationship with Europe as a whole Winner of the Wolfson History Prize 2000 and the Bentinck Prize 2001 '[THE BALKANS] will encourage people to ask awkward, but relevant questions, and to think clearly. It will also lead to much productive future research and scholarship, as well as being an excellent introduction to the region for the general reader' TLS

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

At the end of the twentieth century, people spoke as if the Balkans had plagued Europe forever. However, two hundred years earlier, the Balkans did not exist. It was not the Balkans but the 'Rumeli' that the Ottomans ruled, the formerly Roman lands they had conquered from Byzantium, together with their Christian inhabitants.

In this original account of the region, Mark Mazower dispels current Western clichรฉs and replaces stereotypes with a vivid account of how mountains, empires, and religions have shaped its inhabitants' lives. As a bridge between Europe and Asia, it has been exposed to a constant incursion of nomadic peoples across the centuries.

Mazower's narrative in The Balkans ranges broadly both in time and in space, treating the former Turkish domains in Europe as part of a common, if complex, historical inheritance.

Series: UNIVERSAL HISTORY

View all
  • Islam
    Karen Armstrong's Islam offers a riveting exploration of one of the world's most prominent yet often misunderstood religions. Through her elegant prose and profound insights, Armstrong delves into the historical and cultural evolution of Islam, meticulously tracing its roots from the ancient traditions of Judaism and Christianity. Her narrative introduces us to the life and character of Muhammad, whom she...
    Paperback
    $3199
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Balkans
    At the end of the twentieth century, people spoke as if the Balkans had plagued Europe forever. However, two hundred years earlier, the Balkans did not exist. It was not the Balkans but the 'Rumeli' that the Ottomans ruled, the formerly Roman lands they had conquered from Byzantium, together with their Christian inhabitants. In this original account of the region,...
    Paperback
    Sold Out

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Balkans by Mark Mazower is praised for its insightful and comprehensive overview of Balkan history. It's considered an excellent introduction to the region, offering accessible yet thorough analysis. Many reviewers highlight its illuminating content and valuable perspective for those seeking to understand this complex area.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781842125441

Publisher: Orion Publishing Co

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 20 June 2002

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Weidenfeld & Nicolson

Illustration: 7 Maps

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 20.0mm

Width: 126.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 172g

Pages: 192

About the Author

Mark Mazower is Professor of History at Birkbeck College, London. He has also taught at the University of Sussex and at Princeton

Also by Mark Mazower

View all
  • The Greek Revolution
    A thrilling history of the revolutionary birth of modern Greece. In the exhausted, repressive years that followed Napoleon's defeat in 1815, there was one cause that came to galvanise countless individuals across Europe and the United Statesโ€”freedom for Greece. The Greek Revolution by Mark Mazower recreates one of the most unlikely and significant events in the story of modern Europe....
    Paperback
    $4000
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • On Antisemitism
    What do we mean when we talk about antisemitism? For most of history, antisemitism has been understood as a menace from Europe's political Right, the province of blood-and-soil ethno-nativists who built on Christendom's long-standing suspicion of its Jewish population and infused it with racist pseudo-science. Such threats culminated in the nightmare of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. The landscape is...
    Hardback
    $6000
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Inside Hitler's Greece
    This gripping and richly illustrated account of wartime Greece explores the impact of the Nazi Occupation upon the lives and values of ordinary people. The first full account of the experience of occupation, it offers a vividly human picture of resistance fighters and black marketeers, teenage German conscripts and Gestapo officers, Jews and starving villagers.
    Paperback
    $4099
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • What You Did Not Tell
    A family memoir, encompassing some of the most fascinating aspects of twentieth-century European history, from the acclaimed author of Dark Continent. Uncovering his family's remarkable and moving stories, Mark Mazower recounts the sacrifices and silences that marked a generation and their descendants. It was a family that fate drove into the siege of Stalingrad, the Vilna ghetto, occupied Paris, and...
    Paperback
    Sold Out

More from History & Military

View all
  • Saving Elli
    One child. Two years in hiding. Three lives in mortal danger. In Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, near Anne Frank's house, another Jewish girl is hidden. Her name is Elli. Her father has been executed at Mauthausen concentration camp. Her mother is fleeing for her life. Elli is next. To save her, resistance couple Frits and Jo Hakkens must risk everything, concealing her...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Spy and the Traitor
    The Spy and the Traitor by Ben Macintyre is a spellbinding Cold War thriller that unravels the true story of Oleg Gordievsky, a KGB double agent who risked everything to aid the British in the battle against Soviet oppression. In meticulously researched detail, Macintyre paints a vivid portrait of espionage, double-crossing, and unparalleled bravery, giving readers a riveting glimpse into...
    Paperback
    $2100
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • New Release
    Suicidal Empathy
    The bestselling author of The Parasitic Mind shows why empathy in politics leads to civilizational collapse. What happens when a society elevates victimhood to a virtue and decides that punishment is cruel? You get the disease Dr. Gad Saad calls suicidal empathy. And the West may be terminally infected. In his new book, Suicidal Empathy, Saad unleashes a blistering critique...
    Paperback
    $3099
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Wager
    THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER LONGLISTED FOR THE 2023 BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 'The beauty of The Wager unfurls like a great sail... one of the finest nonfiction books I've ever read' Guardian 'The greatest sea story ever told' Spectator 'I cannot think of anyone who would not love this book... It is an extraordinary true story, beautifully...
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Man's Search For Meaning
    Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl is a profound, thought-provoking memoir and psychological exploration that delves into the harrowing experiences of life in Nazi concentration camps, intertwined with the authorโ€™s groundbreaking theories on existential psychology. The book is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, offering a beacon of hope and a roadmap for finding purpose...
    Paperback
    $1800
    Elsewhere:
    $2100
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Discipline
    Silence is complicity, but how do we confront the cost of speaking up? Sydney, May 2021. Ashraf is an academic whose career and personal life are in freefall. Hannah is a young journalist struggling to honour the voices of her community. When a Year 12 Al-Bayinnah College student is arrested for protesting a university's ties to an Israeli weapons manufacturer,...
    Paperback
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Keep Calm โ€“ We Are Coming
    Keep Calm โ€” We Are Coming briefly backgrounds the New Zealand Special Air Service deployment in Afghanistan โ€” then goes into action. While primarily training Afghan forces, in Kabul the NZSAS had to respond to a series of โ€˜spectacular attacksโ€™ by heavily armed Taliban fighters wearing suicide vests and determined to inflict major casualties. In the words of those who...
    Paperback
    $4000
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • New Release
    The Golden Menhir
    Assurancetourix is entering the legendary Gallic bards' competition to win the golden menhir. But with the Romans keeping a close watch, Asterix and Obelix must protect him at all costs. Their mission? Keep him safe-no matter what... even if it means risking their own ears! First released as a book-disc in 1967, this adventure soon became a rare treasure, long...
    Hardback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $3499
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Cauldron
    How did an elderly cleric overthrow the Shah of Iran and change the world?Why did Bin Laden attack the USA - and why did the USA destroy Saddam?How did Britain and France carve up the Middle East - and why did the Kurds never get their own state? THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO THE MAKING OF TODAY'S MIDDLE EAST: A SPELLBINDING...
    Hardback
    $4999
    Elsewhere:
    $6000
    Backorder
    Ships mid October
  • Biological War
    New Release
    Biological War
    There is an invisible weapon among us. By the time you know you are a victim, it has turned you into a killer. A blistering new non-fiction thriller from the Baillie Gifford shortlisted author of Nuclear War (200,000 copies sold). A lab accident, a bio-attack, a global pandemic, and the collapse of human society. In this essential new book, based...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Shattered Lands
    'A sparkling debut by an outstanding young historian' โ€“ PETER FRANKOPAN 'This book is a revelation โ€ฆ both original and important' โ€“ MISHAL HUSAIN A history of modern South Asia told through five partitions that reshaped it. As recently as 1928, a vast swathe of Asia โ€“ India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, Bhutan, Yemen, Oman, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, and...
    Paperback
    $3699
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Salt
    Homer called it a divine substance. Plato described it as especially dear to the gods. As Mark Kurlansky so brilliantly relates here, salt has shaped civilisation from the beginning, and its story is a glittering, often surprising part of the history of mankind. Wars have been fought over salt and, while salt taxes secured empires across Europe and Asia, they...
    Paperback
    $3500
    In Stock
    Ships Monday

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.