Customer Reviews

The Coasts of Bohemia: A Czech History

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This is a marvelous book. It is far and away the best single work available to English-speaking readers with an interest in Czech history and culture. It also more than merits the attention of anyone with an interest in Central Europe, the Western invention known as "Eastern Europe," European cultural history, or cultural history generally.

Sayer is quite convincing in making his major arguments: that the Czech lands of Bohemia and Moravia are rightly viewed as having stood for centuries at the center of European history; that Czech national identity, created virtually from scratch in the 19th century, exemplifies a complexly and authentically modern process of self-invention; and that the echoes, ironies, and reversals of Czech history hold valuable lessons for Westerners whose notions of "Eastern European" exoticism and backwardness are rivaled, in their ingenuousness, only by our belief in history as progress. He shows in vivid detail how history and historically derived notions of collective identity are refracted in the service of politics and power--and not only by totalitarian regimes. (In one of the book's most disturbingly persuasive sections, Sayer shows how Communism--far from being the wholly alien import that many Czechs would now prefer to see it as--took root in soil that had been well, if unwittingly, prepared by 150 years of often liberal Czech nationalist ideology.) Throughout "The Coasts of Bohemia," he provides a lavishly and (one comes to understand) lovingly detailed journey through the collective psyche of a fascinating nation--though Sayers' love for the Czechs and for Czech culture, we also come to suspect, is fiercely complicated and deeply ambivalent.

It should also be said that Sayers' book is just about a perfect model of what a scholarly book should be: massively detailed but carefully, even dramatically, shaped and organized; filled with concrete particulars but always letting the reader see their relation to the grand themes; stringen! tly reasoned but deeply felt; and extremely well written, illustrated, annotated, and indexed. In all, an extremely intelligent, learned, and sophisticated book that is also a great read.

I can only agree with the eloquent rave of the first reader review. COASTS OF BOHEMIA is a miracle. It sweeps through Czech history, presenting a marvelous depth of historical detail while always remaining thoroughly readable, even beautiful, and exciting. Most of all I was impressed with the way in which the author so persuasively demonstrated a remarkable thesis: that a history so unique, particular, and extraordinary could show us things about European history in general that we had not seen before. A MUST READ for those interested in the area. Another perspective, also arguing for the broad and general implications of a very particular history, is offered in the book PRAGUE TERRITORIES. Both books argue for the contingency of national identity, the former relating it to the selfconsciously invented (reinvented?) Czech cultural "Renaissance" of the 19th century, the latter to the incredible creativity of the small group of Prague German Jews around Franz Kafka. PRAGUE IN BLACK AND GOLD presents the long sweep of Prague history in terms of eternal bloody conflict--ultimately a narrower thesis than the other two but a good introduction to Prague history, Czech and German. MAGICAL PRAGUE is a romantic journey through a cliche, a fun read but it never analyzes the "mystical" image of Prague but only reproduces it. All three of the above books are antidotes to this. But for a history of the Czech nation that enlightens European history generally, no book lives up to Derek Sayer's.

In The Coasts of Bohemia, Derek Sayers tells us how social values are invented and reinterpreted by those with the will and the power to do so, a study of Bohemian history with broader applications. He writes to clarify and contextualize social movements in the Czech lands from before the Hussites to the modern period, but the reader learns late in the book that his passion owes something to the cooperative assistance of his wife, whose father was a professor lost to the world of learning when he was removed by the Nazis as they closed the universities in Czechoslovakia in the 40s.
The book is a bright but isolated star in the realm of scholarship that explains the Czech lands and people to the citizens of the United States. Sayers has a firm grasp on the little things, "the quotidian," that make up cultural identity, but it is his writing style and his ability to weave small points into major themes that makes the book such a masterpiece.
I note with mixed feelings that Sayers works and teaches in Canada. The English-speaking world's gain; America's loss.

The book's subtitle is "A Czech History," but people looking for a general history of the Czech lands will be disappointed. Sayer focuses not on battlefields and parliaments but on art, literature and historiography. He either completely ignores or barely mentions such topics as the world wars, the Munich Pact and the Communist coup while devoting dozens of pages to poets, artists and critics. Thus, despite the rather esoteric nature of Czech history, Sayer assumes readers already know the basics. I guess a title like "The Humanities and Czech Identity, 1620-1960" wouldn't sell as well.

Derek Sayer's book is exceptional well written and informative, indeed the text is positively lyrical at times. The aim is to provide an understanding of a "people of whom we know nothing" in Central Europe, and Sayer does a masterful task in shaping and clarifying Czech national identity and national culture.

The book is not simply a historical text. While the history is there, and while there is copious scholarly detail and referencing of historical events, the main strength of the text is in illustrating a deep national awareness in literature and the arts. One can almost imagine walking with Sayer on his return visit to Prague, walking through the magical streets of this beautiful city and commenting on buildings, street names, and monuments. He has a delicate but assured ability for capturing detail, coincidence, and irony. The book reads very well and it is amazing to remember that the original text was written in Czech and translated into English by the author's wife.

This is an excellent way of understanding more about Czech lands and the Czech spirit and identity. It is a very beautiful literary work that rejoices in the artistic and literary richness of the Czechs, particularly over the last century. I, for one, am very grateful that Derek Sayer made it back to his homeland to reflect on complex issues of history, national identity, and national culture and to write this masterful book: a must for those of us who love the Czech lands and their peoples.

Anybody wanting to gain a deeper knowledge of the Czech people, Czech culture, and Czech spirit should read Derek Sayer's 'The Coasts of Bohemia.' Anybody wanting to dive into the sticky mess of Central European history would also do well to read this book. And those unbelievers who think that a scholarly work must be by its very nature dry and dense, MUST read this book.

Sayer's work stands alone in the veritable dearth of good works dealing with Czechdom. A towering mountain, 'Coasts' is far and away the best door to a culture and nation little understood in the 'West.' In this monumental work, Sayer continues in the grand tradition of Czech historiography started by the grand master of Czech history, Palácky. And like Palácky before him, Sayer attempts to give an answer to that elusive question: Who are the Czechs?

Starting his work with the formulators of written Czech, Josef Jungmann and Josef Dobrovsky, Sayer makes a wise decision. During the Hapsburg rule from 1620 to 1918, the only real home of Czechdom was Cestina, the Czech language. From there, Sayer takes the reader on a serpintine journey through the heart of Czech cultural consciousness. We meet up with poets of the national awakening like Karel Hynek Macha, whose epic poem, 'Máj,' could easily be considered the Czech people's Aeneid, a work that defines who they are as a voice in the cacophony of Europe. Critics of culture like F.X. Salda and voices of modernism in Czech culture like Kundera or the Noble Prize-winning poet, Jaroslav Seifert, also make appearances as Sayer makes a case for the Czech artistic voice being paramount in the creation of national identity. Sayer shows how even supposedly 'international' art trends like surrealism and social-realism all served a very selective end: the search for national identity.

In the realm of politics and ideology, Sayer argues that the Czechs have pursued an uniquely singular course throughout their history. The first people in Europe to rebel against catholic uniformity (hence the term 'bohemian'), Czech preacher, Jan Hus, laid the groundwork for Luther's more cathartic 'reformation.' The followers of Hus, the 'Hussites' not only preached a more Gospel-centered Christian creed stripped of the Roman church's ceremony and tradition, but promoted a lifestyle of radical egaliterianism. This conception of a rank-less society more than anything irked the Catholic Hapsburgs who waged a long and savage war with the Hussites until 1620 when the Austrian Hapsburgs put their unruly neighbors under the boot of Catholic rule until the demise of Austro-Hungary in 1918. Sayer argues that the coals of Hussiterian democracy never cooled down completely but instead smoldered on until the creation of Czechoslovakia in 1918. This grand social experiment led by the teacher-ideologue, Tomas Masaryk, proved to be Central Europe's only real democracy during the years between both world wars. Yet, Sayer makes a strong claim that Hussitism only gained full resurrection (albeit in a radically perverse form) with the ascension to power of the Czech Communist Party in 1948. The Hussite dream of a radical levelling of all economic and social class was made real with the party's drastic restructuring of Czech society which included the violent expulsion of the Sudeten Germans from the Czech lands, the shameful odsun of 1946-47. Czech communists soon took their ideology of 'people's democracy' to such radical extremes that they stamped out all forms of dissent in their quest to create uniform Czech society. Kundera's novels paint a grim picture of a society which sought to regulate, control and oppress its citizens in even the most intimate of spheres.

By the time the reader finishes 'Coasts,' he/she will not only be wiser by far, but quite exhausted as well. The sheer detail and volume of Sayer's information threatens at times to overwhelm the reader. That one quarter of the book is devoted to 'notes' is not by chance. Yet, even these notes are fascinating cultural and historical tidbits. If Sayer's work has a flaw, it lies in the author's selection of material. Selection is the most crucial (and most difficult) element of historiography. What to include, what to exclude, not only makes or breaks a work, but also carries echoes for generations to come. Who and what is left out of the history books is often doomed to oblivion in day to day life as well. Thus said, Sayer's work attempts to define Czechness around a deliberately tiny base. That of one province, Bohemia. While Bohemia did suffer the lion's share of conflict with the neighboring Germans as well as play a central role in the national awakening, two other Czech lands, Moravia and Czech Silesia have also played crucial roles in the formation of Czech identity. Some of the most internationally-known Czech artists originate from these parts i.e. Kundera, Janácek, Lysohorsky and even Mucha. Unfortunately, Sayer glosses over the cultural and historical connections with these lesser-known Bohemias. Moreover, his treatment of Slovakia's role in the making of the Czech nation and Czechoslovak 'idea' is cursory at best. A grievious absence considering the prominent role many Slovaks have played in Czech political life from Masaryk to Dubcek.

All in all though, there is little room to complain. Sayer's work has filled a gapping hole in Central European studies. A profound act of scholarship and one written in a style approaching the lyric, 'The Coasts of Bohemia' is a giant indeed. Read it!

A previous reviewer is right--this is not a Czech history. But it is the history of how Czech culture has been formed. For that, it is fascinating--For a straight history, look elsewhere. If you are travelling to Prague, it will make many sites much richer--Vysehrad cemetery, the National Theatre, Old Town Square.

Sayer takes an original, creative approach in writing the history of Czech culture. Sayer's book is predicated on the notion that the nation is an imagined community, constantly being re-invented and examines what Czechs have long remembered and forgotten about themselves and their little nation.
The book is unique because Sayer does not employ the typical linear approach to writing history, rather, he casts a wide net over the entire spectrum of Czech intellectual activity from 1618-1960, focusing on the cultural borders of language, symbols, and identity vis-vis the Germans just to name a few. Sayer brings the seemingly obscure to life in a lucid, pleasurable read.
The book highlights the Czech feeling of "smallness" or "malostnosti" within Europe. The Czechs have long been at the center of political, cultural, and philsophical developments over the course of history but tragically were often passive observers to events in their own land due to being subjects of other nations' empires. As a consequence, Czechs felt a powerful need to define their cultural coastlines. Their national anthem, "Gde Domov Muj" or "Where is My Home" is indicative of the Czech historical quest for identity and national destiny.
Sayer takes leave of his story circa 1960 when socialism was at its appogee. This tremendous book is the difinitive source of Czech historical culture. To understand the challenges of integrating the "East" into the EU and the senstivities of small nations, read this book.

If a book claims to be a history of a place, then it should at least give the reader decent coverage of the history of that place. But this book fails in that most basic requirement. The author is much more interested in discussing Alfons Mucha and how the Munich Agreement affected this relatively unknown artist than he is in discussing how Czechoslovakia ended up the victim of Hitler. But that fairly well reflects the book as it is more a history of various Czech authors and artists than it is of the Czech people.

The back of the book makes the claim that the book is a "comprehensive history of the Czech people." Unfortunately this is not true. Turn to any page and instead of reading about an event in Czech history, you will read about a sculptor or magazine editor and how they felt about some event that is never actually explained. The book is a struggle to get through if you are not already familiar with the history of Bohemia. If you don't know much about the Slansky trials of the early 1950's, don't expect to know more after reading this book other than what books were banned. And for some unexplained reason, the author decided to end his book in 1960, just before the the reforms that led to the Velvet Revolution. I learned much more about Czech history reading "Under the Cruel Star" than I did reading this book.

Perhaps the book would have been better off described as a review of art and literature in Bohemia up until 1960. At least the book would have been more accurate in its description. After reading this book, I do not feel that I understand the people of the Czech Republic any better than when I started. I can truly say that this is a book that I did not enjoy reading in the least. If ever there was a book that made me feel I wasted my money, this is that book.

"Thou are perfect then our ship hath touched upon the deserts of Bohemia?" Antigonus asked in Shakespeare's Winter Tale. So many people know so little about Bohemia, and Professor Derek Sayer is out to remedy that!

This wonderful book is a cultural history of Bohemia. That is to say, it's a history book, but instead of focusing primarily on kings and battles and so forth, it focuses primarily on the history of Czech culture. This book goes through the history of the Czech language, the changes in Czech religion, and so forth.

Overall, I found this to be an excellent book on the Bohemians, showing how the culture changed (often forcibly!), and how we got to where we are. It's a fascinating book, one that is sure to please anyone of Czech descent.