Prague in Black and Gold: Scenes from the Life of a European City [Paperback]

Peter Demetz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 18, 1998

Prague is at the core of everything both wonderful and terrible in Western history, but few people truly understand this city's unique culture. In Prague in Black and Gold, Peter Demetz strips away sentimentalities and distortions and shows how Czechs, Germans, Italians, and Jews have lived and worked together for over a thousand years. .

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Readers who have visited Prague, one of the most gorgeous cities in Europe, may wish now, after having combed travel guides before their trip, to follow up with some reading on Prague's history; but unless they are serious about learning the subject, this book is best left alone. On the other hand, readers other than casual ones will find the development of Prague absorbingly chronicled here. This "history of a European city built over many centuries by Czechs, Germans, Jews, and Italians" presents both essential and colorful detail of the evolution of the kingdom of Bohemia, from mythical origins to Austrian domination to the post^-World War I flowering of independence and democracy. Demetz writes of such interesting personalities as King Charles IV, who put Prague on the map; Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II, odd and fascinating; Jan Hus, religious reformer; and Thomas Masaryk, internationally esteemed president of the first Czech republic. Of course, history buffs who have never been to Prague will still relish what is offered here. Brad Hooper --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

A very interesting overview of key periods in the four- millennia-old history of central Europe's great ``gateway'' city (one of the meanings of the Czech Praha), which has also served as a bridge between the Slavic region to the east and the Germanic and Latin areas to the west. A Prague-born and -raised literary and intellectual historian, Demetz traces the enormous changes the city underwent between the Middle Ages and the eve of WW II. (Strangely, he does not extend his story to encompass either the brief ``Prague Spring'' of 1968 or the ``velvet revolution'' of 1989 that, with amazing swiftness, brought about communism's collapse.) Demetz is particularly interesting on the revolt led by followers of the martyred Jan Hus, a precursor to Luther, in the early 15th century, and on how the city affected, and sometimes dazzled, the host of literary and other creative figures who lived there or passed through, from Goethe to Andr‚ Breton. He also captures repeated moments of tension, and rather more uncommon ones of harmony, between the city's two large ethnic communities: Germans and Czechs. Both groups periodically turned violently against the city's third great community, the Jews, who also provided a disproportionate share of cultural and scientific leadership. Demetz's style is both richly anecdotal and well grounded in a wide range of secondary sources, and he does an excellent job of balancing political and cultural history. (As a city ``insider,'' Demetz seems particularly knowledgeable about Prague's neighborhoods and architecture.) However, he does have a propensity to overwhelm the reader with myriad names and, on occasion, to become bogged down in narrative details. In general, however, this is a fine introduction to a city that, like Rome or Jerusalem, has equally compelling legendary and actual histories. (maps) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Hill and Wang (March 18, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0809016095
• ISBN-13: 978-0809016099
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #728,145 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #16 in Books > History > Europe > Slovakia
  • #43 in Books > History > Europe > Central Europe
  • #98 in Books > History > Europe > Czech Republic

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A comprehensive piece on Czech people and history, May 14, 2001

By 

Alok Chakrabarti "Prof.C" (Allentown, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prague in Black and Gold: Scenes from the Life of a European City (Paperback)

I have just returned from my first trip Prague and Ostrava. The history of the region is a bit confusing to us who are not familiar with this part of the world. This is an important part of the world, after all the genesis of the First World War is connected to the Bohemian Prince who was also a successor to the Habsburg throne.

Professor Demetz provides a comprehensive background to the history of the country, the intrigues and policitical fights that went on this part of the world. He provides a lively discussion of a serious subject. Prague went through a great number of battles and the people here were well involved with many events that rocked the European politics and religion.

Demetz is from Prague where he grew up and was a victim of anti-semitic tide that swept across Europe. This makes his story so human. This is not a dispassionate history book. I recommend this book to you, if are interested to know a bit more about the Czech republic and its people.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Don't read before you visit Prague, June 16, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Buffalo, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prague in Black and Gold: Scenes from the Life of a European City (Hardcover)

I started reading in preparation for long anticipated trip to Prague. I gave up about half way through before I was completely cured of my desire to visit the magic city. Demetz's goal is to demystify "Praga Magica" and he succeeds. This isn't to say that the book isn't entertaining, interesting and often fascinating, but you'd better bone up on the Reformation, Counter Reformation and various wars of Austrian Succession, or you'll find some chapters as dense and confusing as the labrynthian streets of the Old Town. And the long Latin and Czech citations don't help. To be on he Charles Bridge as night falls and sdee all the steeples and turrets of Prague in their golden aura is too marvelous a rush. Skip Prague in Black and Gold until you come back. It will deepen your appreciation of the magic you have experienced.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read if you're visiting Prague, July 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Prague in Black and Gold: Scenes from the Life of a European City (Paperback)

Despite its heft, discursive style, and lack of illustrations, read this before you visit Prague. You will understand more of the magic of this wonderful city, and how its one thousand years of history made it the special place it is. Your bus tour may take you to the Old Jewish Burial Ground, the Municipal House, the opera house, the castle, the cathedral, the simple church where Jan Huys preached. This book will give meaning to these sights. The only book I can think to compare this to, in its depth, understanding of European history, and understanding of geography, is Rebecca West's Black Lamb, Grey Falcon.