Cracow: An Illustrated History [Paperback]

Zdzislaw Zygulski (Author)

Book Description

Series: Illustrated Histories (Hippocrene) | Publication Date: June 2001

This concise volume offers the reader a panoramic view of Cracow, from its mythical founding to its designation as a European City of Culture in the twenty-first century. Enriched by fifty illustrations and photographs, it explores the city's continuing role as Poland's cultural, social, and educational centre.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Zdzislaw Zygulski

Product Details

• Paperback: 175 pages
• Publisher: Hippocrene Books (June 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0781808375
• ISBN-13: 978-0781808378
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,577,124 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Misses the mark, May 24, 2008

By 

B. Crachiolo - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cracow: An Illustrated History (Paperback)

I was looking for a short overview, and this book seemed that it would fill the bill. I really wanted to like this book, but I find it too uneven. The cultural history is very enjoyable--but it seems abruptly stuck in between pages devoted to political and military history. Transitions would have been helpful. At times, the book was carelessly written. Too often, I found myself backing up to reread a passage because the date of a particular event was unclear (this is especially true of the first 2 chapters). In terms of content, I expected a fast pace, but I was genuinely surprised at some choices, such as how little was written about World War II and the Holocaust. The illustrations promised by the subtitle were nice, but all black and white, and a bit blurry in a few cases. Finally, I found myself bristling early on at the bias that allowed the author to write sentences like this: "One may admire the energy and talents of the prince [i.e., Mieszko] who was able to extract his tribes from the darkness of paganism, to defend his land, and to pass it down to his son Boleslaw" (p. 10).

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Superficial treatment of an ancient city's past, May 27, 2007

By 

Robert K. Warski (Elgin, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cracow: An Illustrated History (Paperback)

This book gives a superficial treatment of the history of this great Polish city. I find no fault in this because that is what I believe was intended. It can serve as a fair introduction to Krakow's past for prospective visitors. The book gives a disproportionate emphasis to cultural history, a reflection, no doubt, of the author's background as a professor of art history. The subtitle "An Illustrated History" would seem to suggest that quality illustrations would be a significant feature of the book. In fact, the black and white illustrations are unremarkable and sometimes of poor quality.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A panoramic history of this old Polish city, February 9, 2002

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cracow: An Illustrated History (Paperback)

The author resides in Cracow and has served as a museum curator and art history professor: he's in a perfect position to provide a panoramic history of this old Polish city from inception to its current state. Black and white photos pepper a survey which considers its history and cultural roots.