The Curtain and the Wall

A Modern Journey Along Europe's Cold War Border

Timothy Phillips

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Hardback

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English

Granta
17 January 2023

History; Postwar 20th century history, from c 1945 to c 2000; The Cold War; Travel writing

The Iron Curtain divided the continent of Europe, north to south, with the Berlin Wall as its most visible, infamous manifestation. Since the Cold War ended and these borders came down, Europe has transformed itself. New generations have grown up, freed from the tensions and restrictions of the past. But what do the Curtain and the Wall mean today? What has happened to the people and places they divided? What have they left in their wake?

In a major new book, Timothy Phillips travels the route of the Iron Curtain from deep inside the Arctic Circle to the meeting point of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey. He explores the borderlands where the clash of civilisations was at its most intense between 1945 and 1989, and where the world's most powerful ideologies became tangible in reinforced concrete and barbed wire. He looks at the new Europe that emerged from the ruins. The people he meets bear vivid witness to times of change. There are those who look back on the Cold War with nostalgia and affection. Others despise it, unable to forgive the hard and sometimes lost decades that their families, friends and nations endured. These old fault lines have much to tell us about Europe now and about our societies' current disputes - over borders, and about belonging and the meaning of progress.

The Curtain and the Wall transports the reader across 5,000 kilometres of Europe and through eight decades, to show how one of the defining stories of the 20th century continues to shape our world today.

By: Timothy Phillips
Imprint: Granta
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 153mm, Spine: 32mm
Weight: 695g
ISBN: 9781783785766
ISBN 10: 1783785764
Pages: 480
Publication Date: 17 January 2023
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Timothy Phillips is the author of The Secret Twenties: British Intelligence, the Russians, and the Jazz Age (Granta, 2017) and Beslan: The Tragedy of School No. 1 (Granta, 2008). He grew up in Northern Ireland and now lives in London. He holds a doctorate in Russian from Oxford University and has written and spoken widely on British and Russian history.

Reviews for The Curtain and the Wall: A Modern Journey Along Europe's Cold War Border

An account not only of how the Cold War frontiers were drawn, guarded or penetrated by brave escapers, but - more importantly - of how often they were rendered discreetly porous by all kinds of compromise ... fascinating -- Neal Ascherson A brilliant book, not only based on an inspired idea, but also written with a keen eye for human hopes, fears and tragedies. ... full of surprises -- William Hague [Phillips] visited strange places that very few people have ever heard of but which, nevertheless, were vitally important in the east-west divide... [He] can be very funny... Yet Phillips can also be sombre... Excellent * Sunday Times * Phillips has a good ear for historical anecdotes and writes with empathy and acuity about the people and places he encounters... These individual stories are narrated with energy and aplomb * TLS * At a time when we seem to be entering a new Cold War, here's a book on the hangover from the original one... [Phillips] travels from the Arctic Circle to Turkey's eastern border, tracing the history of the Iron Curtain and meeting the people who live with its legacy * Deskbound Traveller * An engaging blend of travel, history and politics, with much resonance for today * Bookseller * A first class analysis of cold war history... well researched * Sunday Independent *