All Rivers Run to the Sea  •  Elie Wiesel BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1996 •  PAPER  • 464 PAGES Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel recounts his remarkable life, from his childhood in Romania to the horrors of Auschwitz, his days as a young writer in post-war France and New York, his many pilgrimages to Israel, and his ongoing support Jewish of communities. (EUR153, $16.00)
The Art of Polish Cooking  •  Alina Zeranska  •  Janina Domanska FOOD •  1989 •  HARD COVER  • 384 PAGES A cookbook brimming with traditional Polish recipes, from hors d'oeuvres to desserts, and everything in between. The majority of the book is devoted to recipes, but there is also information on celebrating holidays the Polish way. (PLD15, $23.00)
Berlitz Polish Phrase Book & CD  •  Berlitz Multimedia LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2007 •  AUDIO CD  • 224 PAGES A 224-page phrase book and audio CD, this handy language primer focuses on food, people, fun and the basic phrases for getting around in another language. Compatible with iPod and MPS devices, this bestselling series is geared for travelers. (PLD69, $14.95)
Birds of Europe  •  Killian Mullarney  •  Lars Svensson  •  Dan Zetterstrom  •  Peter J. Grant FIELD GUIDE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES • FAVORITE This Princeton Field Guide features 3,500 illustrations by Killian Mullarney and Dan Zetterstrom. Color plates depict every species -- and sometimes several different variants -- for 722 birds found from the Urals to the Atlantic, Scandinavia to the Middle East. (FG47, $29.95)
Breathing Under Water and Other East European Essays  •  Stanislaw Baranczak CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1992 •  PAPER  • 258 PAGES Poet and professor Stanislaw Baranczak, a fixture on the Eastern European intellectual scene in the second half of the 20th century, reflects on writers and writing in this collection of stimulating and insightful essays. (EUR139, $12.50)
The Captive Mind  •  Czeslaw Milosz LITERATURE •  1990 •  PAPER  • 251 PAGES Polish poet Milosz, ever politically and intellectually engaged, asks why some citizens succumb to totalitarianism while others resist. His essay is a case-by-case study of Polish intellectuals (unnamed here but who include the writer Tadeusz Borowski), who have had much unenviable experience of totalitarianism. (PLD30, $14.00)
Cat in the Ghetto, Stories  •  Rachmil Bryks LITERATURE •  2008 •  PAPER  • 176 PAGES • COMING IN NOVEMBER A poignant and darkly comic portrait of life in the Lodz ghetto and Auschwitz by a survivor, these stories were first published in 1959. (CEU39, $14.00)
Central Europe, Enemies, Neighbors, Friends  •  Lonnie Johnson HISTORY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 351 PAGES An academic survey of the social, political, and economic past of Central Europe, and the conflicts that stir modern-day European politics. From medieval to modern times, the formative historical events of Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, and Croatia, are all introduced. Johnson is especially successful in analyzing the struggle of small nations in the face of imperial powers and how these experiences have created a diverse European heritage. With maps. Awarded an Outstanding Academic Book of 1997 by Choice. (EUR69, $39.95)
Chopin in Paris, The Life and Times of the Romantic Composer  •  Tad Szulc BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2000 •  PAPER  • 444 PAGES A biography of the famed composer, who left his Polish homeland, traveled to Vienna, and then settled for two decades in Paris, where he discovered the emerging Romantic movement. Chopin worked among the minds of Hugo, Lizt and Berlioz, and became involved in a stormy relationship with feminist writer George Sand before succumbing to tuberculosis at the age of 39. Szulc draws from a collection of correspondence and private journals in a book that emphasizes the "times," rather than the music, of Chopin. (FRN161, $20.95)
Chopin's Funeral  •  Benita Eisler BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2004 •  PAPER  • 240 PAGES A skillfully written biography of the composer. Eisler starts with an evocative description of Chopin's lavish funeral before moving backward into his troubled life. (PLD60, $14.95)
Christians in the Warsaw Ghetto, An Epitaph for the Unremembered  •  Peter F. Dembowski HISTORY •  2005 •  PAPER Dembowski, a veteran of the Warsaw uprising, draws on personal experience, thorough research and previously untranslated texts to bring to life a forgotten chapter in the history of World War II. (PLD59, $18.00)
Clara's Grand Tour, Travels With a Rhinoceros in Eighteenth-century Europe  •  Glynis Ridley HISTORY •  2006 •  PAPER  • 240 PAGES The entertaining history of a most unusual eighteenth-century European celebrity. Clara the Indian rhinoceros was brought to Europe in 1741 by the Dutch sea captain Douwemout Van der Meer, and toured for seventeen years, to the delight of heads of state such as Louis XV and Frederick the Great. A marvelous and unique look at the introduction of Eastern wildlife into the Western world. (FRN536, $12.00)
Concise History of Poland  •  Jerzy Lukowski  •  Hubert Zawadzki HISTORY •  2006 •  PAPER  • 336 PAGES A brief, straightforward chronological history of Poland from its medieval roots, through the partitioning of the country in 1795, and up to the present day. With maps and illustrations. (PLD44, $26.99)
The Cossacks, An Illustrated History  •  John Ure HISTORY •  2001 •  HARD COVER  • 288 PAGES In this lively, beautifully illustrated overview, a career diplomat (and frequent visitor to the region) explores the history of the Cossacks in Southern Russia and central Asia and their role in world affairs. With 105 color and 30 black and white illustrations. Interestingly, Ure challenges the notion that the Cossacks are no longer influential (or evident), detailing their involvement in Chechnya, Bosnia and other places. (RUS135, $45.00)
Eastern Europe in the Twentieth Century and After  •  R. J. Crampton HISTORY •  1997 •  PAPER  • 526 PAGES A well-written, insightful scholarly country-by-county history of modern Eastern Europe. (EUR273, $42.95)
Eastern Europe Map  •  Freytag & Berndt MAP A detailed travel map of Eastern Europe at a scale of 1:2,000,000 with the Baltic States, Belarus, Ukraine and Russia from St. Petersburg to Moscow and the Black Sea. Place names are in the local language and Cyrillic. (EUR36, $11.95)
Eat Smart in Poland  •  Joan B. Peterson GUIDEBOOK •  2005 •  PAPER  • 160 PAGES This food-oriented guidebook has as its subtitle: How to Decipher the Menu, Know the Market Foods & Embark on a Tasting Adventure. With an overview of the food of Poland, helpful phrases, menu guide, and glossary of food and flavors. (PLD45, $12.95)
The Faithful River  •  Stefan Zeromski  •  Bill Johnston LITERATURE •  1999 •  PAPER  • 179 PAGES First published in 1912, this famous Polish novel focuses on the fortunes of a wealthy manor family during the 1863 Polish uprising against Russian rule. (PLD31, $16.95)
Fatelessness  •  Imre Kertesz  •  Tim Wilkinson LITERATURE •  2004 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES This powerful novel by a Pulitzer Prize-winner tells the story of a teenage boy deported from Hungary to the Nazi death camps in 1944. It's drawn from Kertesz's own experiences in Auschwitz and Buchenwald. In a new tranlsation by Tim Wilkinson. (CEU26, $13.95)
Fires of Hatred, Ethnic Cleansing in Twentieth-Century Europe  •  Norman M. Naimark HISTORY •  2002 •  PAPER  • 248 PAGES This illuminating study focuses on five cases where genocide was a matter of government policy: The Armenians and Greeks of Anatolia; The Nazi Attack on the Jews; Soviet Deportation of the Chechens-Ingush and the Crimean Tatars; The Expulsion of Germans from Poland and Czechoslovakia; and The Wars of Yugoslav Succession. Norman Naimark is director of Stanford's programs in International Relations and a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. (EUR179, $20.50)
Fodor's Poland  •  Fodor's Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2007 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES A practical guide in the popular series, packed with valuable information on accommodation, shopping, sights and dining. Include good coverage of Warsaw and Cracow. (PLD72, $19.95)
Germany and Poland from Historical Confrontation to Partnership Relationships  •  Z. Anthony Kruszewski HISTORY •  2004 •  HARD COVER  • 336 PAGES A collection of scholarly essays on the political relationship between Germany and Poland over the last 200 years. Z. Anthony Kruszewski is a professor of political science at the Univerity of Texas at El Paso. (CEU22, $49.95)
God's Playground, A History of Poland, 1795 to the Present  •  Norman Davies HISTORY •  2005 •  PAPER  • 752 PAGES Volume II of Davies' comprehensive, scholarly history. (PLD64, $30.00)
God's Playground, A History of Poland, The Origins to 1795  •  Norman Davies HISTORY •  2005 •  PAPER  • 435 PAGES The first volume of Davies' comprehensive, authoritative history of Poland. (PLD67, $30.00)
The Gothic Enterprise, A Guide to Understanding the Medieval Cathedral  •  Robert A. Scott ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2005 •  PAPER  • 307 PAGES Scott, whose interest in the history of cathedrals began when he first saw the magnificent Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Salisbury, England, takes his reader on a historical, architectural and sociological tour of the magnificent spires and stained-glass windows that dot the landscape of Europe. It's an accessible, personable overview. (EUR190, $17.95)
Great Country Houses of Poland  •  Lord Michael Pratt ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2007 •  HARD COVER  • 144 PAGES An in-depth and illustrated guide to some of Poland's magnificent castles and estates. (PLD57, $39.95)
Here Is Where We Meet  •  John Berger LITERATURE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES This novel weaves a portrait of several European countries through encounters with the dead, from the narrator's mother, whom he discovers on a park bench in Lisbon, to a childhood friend wandering a market in Krakow. "The dead don't stay where they are buried," the protagonist's mother tells him, and this becomes the mantra for this most unusual journey through Europe's history and people. (EUR189, $14.00)
Historical Atlas of Central Europe  •  Paul Mogocsi HISTORY •  2002 •  PAPER  • 232 PAGES An influential, authoritative survey of maps and shifting borders in the region from the Middle Ages until the present. With dozens of superb color maps illuminating the history and ethnic complexity of this bewildering part of the world. The atlas covers the region from Poland, Lithuania, and the eastern part of Germany to Greece and western Turkey and extends in time from the early fifth century to the present. (EUR33, $45.00)
The History of Eastern Europe for Beginners  •  Paul Beck HISTORY •  1997 •  PAPER  • 186 PAGES • COMING IN An irreverent tour of recent Eastern European history in documentary comic-book style, a provocative, fast-moving and opinionated look at who is in conflict with whom and why, nationhood, ethnicity and the future. (EUR30, $11.00)
Insight Guide Poland  •  Insight Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2004 •  PAPER  • 314 PAGES A handsomely illustrated introduction to Poland, this guidebook features essays on history, culture and economy, as well as practical information for the traveler. With 15 helpful maps and numerous color photographs. (PLD14, $23.95)
Inventing Eastern Europe, The Map of Civilization on the Mind of Enlightenment  •  Larry Wolff HISTORY •  1994 •  PAPER  • 419 PAGES A scholarly analysis and history of European geopolitics during the Age of Enlightenment. The author, a professor of history, looks back to Rousseau, Voltaire and Western (mis)perceptions of Eastern Europe during the late 18th century. With chapters on 18th-century literature, fantasy and folklore, travelers and voyages. Recommended for intellectually minded travelers with a serious interest in geography, this book sheds light on widely shared conventions about Eastern Europe. (EUR34, $29.95)
Knopf Mapguide Warsaw  •  Knopf Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2006 •  PAPER  • 48 PAGES A handy set of full color, ingeniously folded maps, each indicating favorite sites, shops, restaurants and attractions. (PLD52, $9.95)
Lonely Planet Central Europe  •  Lonely Planet GUIDEBOOK •  2007 •  PAPER  • 640 PAGES A comprehensive guide to Central Europe, including Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. It is a compact overview of the region, especially appropriate for the independent-minded traveler visiting several countries. With local and regional maps, a section of color photographs, and information on history, culture and attractions. (EUR94, $28.99)
Lonely Planet Eastern Europe  •  Lonely Planet GUIDEBOOK •  2007 •  PAPER  • 952 PAGES A comprehensive guide to Eastern Europe, including Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Yugoslavia. It is a compact overview of the region, especially appropriate for the independent-minded traveler visiting several countries. With 150 local and regional sketch maps, and a 10-15-page overview of each country. (EUR72, $28.99)
Lonely Planet Poland  •  Dydynski Krzysztof GUIDEBOOK •  2008 •  PAPER  • 600 PAGES A practical, comprehensive guide in familiar Lonely Planet style. (PLD36, $24.99)
Madame Curie, A Biography  •  Eve Curie BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2001 •  PAPER  • 448 PAGES Marie Sklodowska Curie's life in science, as chronicled by her daughter Eve. Winner of two Nobel Prizes, Madame Curie was born and raised in Poland in the late 19th century, married in Paris and celebrated throughout the world. This biography recounts her remarkable life, with no little amount of information about her milieu. Reissued in 2001 with a new introduction by Natalie Angier. (PLD27, $20.95)
Mammals of Europe  •  Priscilla Barrett  •  David W. MacDonald FIELD GUIDE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 320 PAGES Published by Princeton, this is a field guide to land and marine mammals throughout Europe, both endemic and introduced. With more than 600 color illustrations of over 200 mammals, it's a comprehensive handbook, with detailed descriptions, range maps and commentary on behavior. (FG61, $34.95)
Milosz's ABCs  •  Czeslaw Milosz  •  Madeline G. Levine BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2000 •  HARD COVER  • 313 PAGES Arranged alphabetically by topic, these short prose pieces are the Polish poet's musings on matters personal, literary and global. Not quite a memoir, nor exactly an essay, this far-ranging book bespeaks the Eastern European intellectual experience. (PLD26, $24.00)
Miracle Fair, Selected Poems  •  Wislawa Szymborska  •  Joanna Trzeciak  •  Czeslaw Milosz LITERATURE •  2001 •  HARD COVER  • 159 PAGES Arranged thematically, this collection of the Polish Nobel laureate's poetry spans the course of her career. The Swedish Academy, announcing the 1996 Nobel Prize, praised Szymborska's "poetry that with ironic precision allows the historical and biological context to come to light in fragments of human reality". How does all that translate on the page? Here's what Szymborska says of death, in "On Death, Without Exaggeration": It can't take a joke,/ find a star, make a bridge./ It knows nothing about weaving, mining, farming,/ building ships, or baking cakes." Indeed. This excellent selection is introduced by Szymborska's countryman Czeslaw Milosz. (PLD29, $24.95)
Monologue of a Dog, New Poems  •  Wislawa Szymborska LITERATURE •  2005 •  HARD COVER  • 112 PAGES Nobel laureate Syzmborska ruminates on both past and present in this imaginative, evocative collection of poems, which includes both the original Polish and the English translation. (PLD65, $22.00)
Neighbors, The Destruction of the Jewish Community in Jedwabne, Poland  •  Jan Tomasz Gross CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2002 •  PAPER  • 240 PAGES A controversial, harrowing account of the July, 1941 massacre of 1,600 Jews in a single town. (PLD74, $15.00)
Night  •  Elie Wiesel  •  Marion Wiesel BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2006 •  PAPER  • 109 PAGES Autobiographical in nature, this slim memoir is drawn directly from Elie Wiesel's horrifying experiences during the Holocaust. He witnessed the death of his family before being shipped off to Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Ultimately, Wiesel struggles to find faith in a God who has allowed such monstruous events to happen. (EUR79, $9.00)
Night  •  Marion Wiesel  •  Elie Wiesel BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2006 •  HARD COVER A new translation of Wiesel's account of the horrors of the Holocaust. He witnessed the death of his family before being shipped off to Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Wiesel struggles eloquently to find faith in a God who has allowed such monstruous events to happen in this powerful memoir, (EUR222, $19.95)
The Northern Wars: War, State and Society in Northeastern Europe, 1558-1721  •  Robert I. Frost HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 401 PAGES An illuminating, scholarly history of the struggle over Estonia, Livonia and control of the Nordic-Baltic region by Sweden, Prussia, and Russia. Frost covers the heavily militarized period between the 16th-century takeover of the Baltic empires of the knights of the Teutonic order and the 18th century, when mighty Poland-Lithuania was devoured by its neighbors. Largely ignored today as a historical power, the flow of Polish-Lithuanian grain, timber, hemp and pitch through the Baltic provided vital raw materials for the European economy in the 16th and 17th centuries. (BLT15, $51.60)
Pimsleur Quick & Simple Polish  •  Pimsleur Language Method LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2005 •  AUDIO CD Four audio CDs with eight 30-minute lessons in basic Polish, covering elementary vocabulary and phrases used in travel and everyday situations. The Pimsleur method emphasizes the use of listening skills without reading materials (so there isn't a book to follow along). It's advertised as "Totally audio: hear it, learn it, speak it." (PLD47, $19.95)
The Polish Country Kitchen Cookbook  •  Sophie Hodorowicz Knab FOOD •  2002 •  HARD COVER  • 307 PAGES An collection of Polish recipes, seasoned with supplemental information on the nation's history and culture. (PLD61, $24.95)
Polish, A Language Map  •  Kristine K. Kershul LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2002 •  PLASTIC CARD This durable, foldout card, featuring 1,000 words and phrases, works as a quick reference for travelers. (PLD48, $7.95)
Polish, Start Speaking Today  •  Language/30 LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2004 •  AUDIO CD A 90-minute crash course in Korean, featured on compact disc with a phrasebook. (PLD55, $21.95)
Pope John Paul II  •  Tad Szulc BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1996 •  PAPER  • 624 PAGES A sympathetic portrait of the Pope by the New York Times reporter who has also written biographies of Fidel Castro and Frederic Chopin. Szulc, who interviewed the Pope in 1994, also had access to the Pontiff's papers. (PLD39, $7.99)
A Question of Honor: The Kosciuszko Squadron, Forgotten Heroes of World War II  •  Lynne Olson  •  Stanley Cloud HISTORY •  2003 •  HARD COVER  • 512 PAGES The riveting history of the No. 303 "Kosciuszko" Polish Fighter Squadron, an all Polish unit of the Royal Air Force formed during WWII. Composed of Polish exiles and refugees, the squadron was indepensible in winning the Battle of Britain -- they shot down more German planes than any of their British counterparts. (PLD56, $29.95)
Return to Diversity: A Political History of East Central Europe Since World War II  •  Joseph Rothschild HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 338 PAGES • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE An opinionated, well-written and clear political history of Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Romania, Bulgaria and Albania since WWII, completely revised for this third edition to reflect post-Soviet realities. (EUR31, $34.95)
Rick Steves' French, Italian & German Phrase Book & Dictionary  •  Rick Steves LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2003 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES A compact phrase book for travelers, organized thematically and with a brief dictionary. French, German and Italian phrases are side-by-side on the page so that you can pick and choose depending on the situation. This is no dry litany but instead peppered with humor and Rick Steves' insider insight into how to break the ice and make friends around the world. (EUR142, $9.95)
A Roadside Dog  •  Czeslaw Milosz  •  Robert Haas LITERATURE •  1999 •  PAPER A marvelous collection of verse, essays, aphorisms, and short prose poems by the Nobel laueate. (PLD46, $14.00)
Shtetl, The Life and Death of a Small Town and the World of Polish Jews  •  Eva Hoffman HISTORY •  2007 •  PAPER  • 296 PAGES Hoffman (Exit into History) vividly portrays Polish-Jewish life in the multi-cultural village of Bransk over eight centuries in this illuminating history. (PLD73, $15.95)
Travelers' Tales, A Woman's Europe  •  Marybeth Bond  •  Mary Morris ANTHOLOGY •  2004 •  PAPER  • 298 PAGES This entertaining collection depicts Europe through the eyes of a diverse group of women writers, including Frances Mayes, Jan Morris and Mary Morris. These humorous and well-written true stories capture the misadventures, discoveries and slices of life that the continent (and travel!) has to offer. (EUR160, $17.95)
Two Cities: On Exile, History, and the Imagination  •  Adam Zagajewski LITERATURE •  2002 •  PAPER A series of lyrical essays, sketches and reflections by the influential poet, addressing among his many preoccupations: loss, dislocation, totalitarian regimes, creativity and beauty. Zagajewski, whose family was tossed out of his birthplace in Lvov when the border shifted from Poland to the U.S.S.R. after WWII, came of age in Cracow and now divides his time between Paris and the United States. (PLD38, $18.95)
Tzili, The Story of a Life  •  Aharon Appelfeld  •  Dalya Bilu LITERATURE •  1996 •  PAPER  • 192 PAGES A moving story of a young Jewish girl whose family accidentally leaves her behind when they flee Poland. She survives the Holocaust hiding in the forest, where she finds love and a sense of belonging. Like Tzili, the author is a Holocaust survivor. A prominent Israeli author, Appelfeld fled to the forest from a concentration camp at the age of eight. (PLD13, $12.00)
Warsaw Map  •  Insight Maps MAP A laminated, full-color map of the city center of Warsaw at a scale of 1:23,500. With regional maps and travel information. (PLD41, $7.95)
With the Armies of the Tsar, A Nurse at the Russian Front in War and Revolution, 1914-1918  •  Frances Farmborough HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 422 PAGES An extraordinary memoir of life on the battlefield by an English governess in Moscow who volunteered her services as a nurse in WWI. A witness to the 1917 revolution, she accompanied Russia's troops in Poland, Austria and Rumania, finally fleeing to Vladivostok from where she escaped home to Britain. With 50 of Farmborough's photographs. (RUS139, $19.95)
Woman from Hamburg And Other True Stories  •  Hanna Krall  •  Madeline G. Levine BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2006 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES A journalist from Warsaw born in 1937, Krall reveals the lives and strange trajectories of her compatriots in these stories, profiles and interviews of survivors of WWII. (PLD49, $14.95)
Yiddish Civilisation, The Rise and Fall of a Forgotten Nation  •  Paul Kriwaczek HISTORY •  2006 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES A warm, witty and anecdotal history of Yiddish as a language and culture in central and eastern Europe. (EUR208, $15.95)
Yiddish Folktales  •  Beatrice Weinreich LITERATURE •  1997 •  PAPER  • 413 PAGES A collection of 178 Yiddish tales, many just a paragraph or two, gathered from throughout Eastern Europe as part of a project by the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research in the 1920s and 30s. (CEU33, $18.00)