Kosovo: A Short History

Readers following the war in Kosovo through newspaper and television coverage may well ask why ethnic Albanians and Serbs are struggling so violently to command the small region. Kosovo, Malcolm explains, is the birthplace of Serbian nationalism; the defeat of Serbian forces there in 1389 by Turkish troops became emblematic of the fall of the Serbian empire, as it led to Turkish domination of the Balkans. Contemporary warriors of Serbia are, in Malcolm's eyes, evidently attempting to reverse the course of history by reclaiming the land from its Turkish conquerors--but in the absence of the Turks, they'll take it from the Albanians (the largest ethnic group among Kosovo's inhabitants) whose ancestors converted to Islam when the Turks ruled the region. Malcolm's lucid text shows again and again that the ethnic conflict in Kosovo is less a battle over bloodlines and religion than it is one over differing conceptions of national origins and history. "When ordinary Serbs learn to think more rationally and humanely about Kosovo and more critically about some of their national myths," he concludes, "all the people of Kosovo and Serbia will benefit--not least the Serbs themselves."

Reader Reviews:

Excellent review of the history of the region (2/3 people found this helpful)

It is hard to find a book about Kosovo, without the writer taking sides. Especially when considering that the Balkan history was rewritten many times. Neol's book is neutral and tries to describe the myths about the Balkan that Western countries didn't know about it.

on-sided and incomplete account (2/9 people found this helpful)

The contents of the book does not correspond with the title. Malcolm looks at Kosovo's history from an almost exclusively Albanian perspective, and fails to include the positions of other parties involved. Too often, Malcolm feels obliged to counter Serbian views in a rather symplistic manner, without even explaining these views.

Malcolm largely neglects Kosovo's recent history. I would therefore recommend "Between Serb and Albanian: History of Kosovo" by Miranda Vickers. It offers a much more balanced and credible picture, in particular for what the post WW II events is concerned.

Impartial, Well Researched (5/6 people found this helpful)

The material in this book has been well researched and interprets the sources with authority. This region has had a very complicated and a very long history, with different peoples interpreting the history in different ways. This books tries to establish the truth, and the truth is fascinating. It is a must for anyone wishing to get an insight into this region

Well-researched and written, flawed by its partisan politics (9/17 people found this helpful)

I was interested to read what has become a standard work on Kosovo and its conflicts. The online reviews are divided into two camps: "great book" and "one-sided propaganda". The problem is that both are partly right, it is well-written and well-researched in a neglected area, and I would have given it top marks but for the "partisan politics" problem, which is also real. This mainly affects the later part of the book, the parts dealing with Kosovos early history are good, and the book is worth it just for them.
The problem with the recent part is that, as Noel Malcolm observes, nationality is as much myth and belief as anything else. He skilfully outlines and deconstructs the myths and pretensions of the Serbian side, but never subjects other side(s)in Kosovos conflicts to the same critique, being largely uncritical in accepting their assertions and evaluations.
I felt a little deceived that the book moved from history to polemic without making the shift clear, and it meant I found I didn?t altogether trust the earlier narrative. It was a bit like reading a well-researched history of Northern Ireland, written by Gerry Adams or Ian Paisley. The best idea is to read it, but in conjunction with Misha Glenny?s ?The Balkans? or ?The Fall of Yugoslavia? or Tim Judah?s ?The Serbs?...

a partisan opinion rather than 'history' (5/16 people found this helpful)

In general, I was disappointed both by the quality and the content. The book is clearly biased in favor of one side. I don't mind people expressing their political views, but I would expect them not to use delicate words, like 'History' to describe their work. A title like 'Kosova: a political opinion', would be much more honest. To write 'History' is to go through all available sources, from all involved parts. Unfortunately Dr Malcolm refers explicitely to Albanian sources. If this is not an example of partisan historiography, then what is it?

Kosovo: A Short History

Noel Malcolm

Editorial Review: