Customer Reviews

The Ukrainians: Unexpected Nation

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Clearly, Wilson's book may not be ignored by anyone who who is interested in the pesky "Ukrainian Question." One must admire his scope (from antiquity to the present, post-Soviet Ukraine--one half of the book is dedicated to post 1991 Ukraine)and the depth of his research. Its greatest merit lies in that it offers an "outsider's" perspective to the traditional russocentric or "nationalistic" readings of the Ukrainian history and identity. On the other hand, its explicit agenda to "debunk myths" and to "set the record straight" proves somewhat too facile and, ultimately, unfair. It is not that Ukrainians are devoid of "mythologies" or that the current post-Soviet Ukrainian elites are not prone to create new myths. But so what? Ukraine's "elder brother," Putin's Russia (or, for that matter, George Bush's U.S.A) does not subscribe to persistent national mythologies. Wilson is correct in sending warning salvos against various self-seving interpretations of the Ukrainian by some national historians, but his determination to completely "de-construct" Ukrainian nationality leads to a dead-end. Thus, despite the many details and frequent insights, in the end Wilson fails to resolve the very question which he set to analyze: what is a "Ukrainian?" This is a central issue that goes beyond Wilson's personal academic interest, inasmuch some 300 years of Russian imperial control, cultural and linguistic repressions, and territorial fragmentation still haunt the national Ukrainian psyche. Timely as this book is, it only raises more questions, which the author fails to resolve with such rhetorical stunts as "supposedly," "could" and "should." That is intellectual cheating.

The reader, therefore, should read this book not only with interest but also with great care and not be swayed by its breezy
prose, implied objectivity and casual arrogance. Even those previous reviewers, whose disdain for President Kuchma and his cronies I fully share, should balance Wilson's model of Ukrainian nationhood with alternate narratives. This is a good book, but it should not be considered definitive.

I was immensely impressed with Professor Wilson's book on Ukraine. He starts with pre-historic times and ends with the 21st century, showing why this country of 50 million people is important and why it is in a critical period in its history.
Wilson's knowledge is immense, the result of much scholarship, interviews and many visits. His is an objective view that aims to be fair, which means that many members of the Ukrainian political right and left will be displeased with parts of this book.
I found that it filled many gaps in my knowledge and underlined Ukraine's precarious stuation. It is now ruled by a ... elite (read old communist commisars) an elite that has no loyalty to the Ukrainian people. It has tried to plunder the country's resources as quickly as possible. This elite is not interested in the rule of law or fair taxation. ...
So the country has venal oligarchs on the right, supporting Kuchma, and the communist party on the left. It is still powerful in Ukraine's parliament and is oppsed to any real economic reform.
Ukraine needs a miracle or else it will again be swallowed up by Russia, which as Profesor Wilson points out, will not be good for the world. Not onl;y will the attempt mean a civil war but if Russia succeeds it will once again try for empire.
A final note: this is not an entertainment, a fun read, like many books about countries. You have to be seriously interested in understanding modern Ukraine. Look at it more as a textbook. I found it invaluable, especially this new edition which brings it up to 2002.

This book tries to do two jobs, and it does them both very well.

The first task is to explain the history of the Ukrainian national idea. It is not really a history of the nation, but more of a history of how the consciousness that there was a people and nation came into existance. (In other words, he does not go into a lot of detail about cossack revolts and wars and the like, but he shows how these affected the way people thought.) Wilson does a trememdous job here.

The second task of the book is to see what the Ukrainians have made of their independence since 1991. This is extremely important, since the American media has generally ignored Ukraine since independence and focused solely on Russia. I had a little trouble following all of Wilson's material here, since I had so little foundation on what has happened in Ukraine recently. However, Wilson presents his facts clearly, and where possible makes useful comparisons to developments in Russia, Czech Rep., Poland, etc., so I could get a handle on things.

In short, this is simply a superb book, one that will take the reader very far in understanding Ukraine and the challenges before it.

Andrew Wilson's history of Ukraine is unlike any other book written on the subject. It does not attempt to cover the entire history of Ukraine from classical antiquity to the present, like Orest Subtelny's landmark book, Ukraine. Rather, the book's thesis looks backwards from Ukrainian Independence and asks how such a nation came into existence, and weighs its chances for survival.

I grew up in a Ukrainian emigre community that taught one rigid perspective on Ukrainian history -- the Ukrainian nationalist perspective. Wilson's book shares this perspective, and more: he exposes the reader to the Russian perspective, the east Ukrainian perspective, and the various schools of thought of such past scholars such as Hrushevsky, Dontsov, Kostomarov, Malaniuk and Drahomanov.

As other reviewers have mentioned, Wilson's book does a marvelous job of contrasting Ukraine's diverse regions: Galicia and Crimea are an excellent example of the contrast. He also contrasts the various sub-ethnoses of the Ukrainian people, a topic rarely discussed by Ukrainian nationalists: for example, the Galicians, the Carpatho-Rusyns, the Malorossy, the Novorossy, the Kuban Cossacks and the Rusichi. The discussion expands further to the question of minorities, most notably, the Russians. Wilson does an excellent job of contrasting their various perspectives and raises questions about how well they will be able to mesh to form a Ukrainian state. Ukrainian nationalists tend to assume that this is simply going to happen, but one look at the former Yugoslavia is a good reminder that sometimes nation-building doesn't work out as planned.

In short, this is an outstanding read about the various perspectives of the people who make up Ukraine. It is illustrative about the challenges that lie ahead in creating a Ukrainian state, not the least of which is Ukraine's future orientation -- Europe, or Russia?

I believe this book was very well-written and fair in its evaluation of Ukrainian history. I based these comments in part on my Ukrainian descent; and my travels and discussions with Ukrainian citizens. The book does a better(and excellent) job of reviewing fairly recent events in Ukrainian politics and demographics; than it does in reviewing Ukrainian history - but that appears to be intentional. As an American, I noticed what appeared to be British colloquialisms in several places that I didn't understand.

"The Ukrainians: Unexpected Nation" by Andrew Wilson is a wonderful introduction to a now well-known country and people. Wilson's purpose, somewhat dissimilar to conventional histories, is to trace the development of the nation and draw distinctions between mythology and history.

Russians generally perceive Ukrainians to be a part of their nation, explaining the great sense of loss when, in 1991, Ukraine became independent. Ukrainians consistently make the case that they have a distinct heritage and culture.

Both sides have a significant incentive to invent or shade history to support their respective positions.

Wilson skillfully debunks that retrospective myth-making and concludes that the truth, as always, lies somewhere in the middle. Over the past several hundred years, there has been significant cross-pollination, generally benefiting both nations.

For a more detailed and traditional history, try "Ukraine: A History" by Orest Subtelny. Paul Robert Magocsi's "A History of Ukraine" is also a competent study. But be warned: they're both 800 pages long.

Wilson covers a lot of ground and gives a good sense of the historical background and issues surrounding "what is a Ukrainian" without taking sides - something tough for a Russian, Ukrainian, or Pole to do.

The current politics is really nicely covered - I had the opportunity to watch the Orange revolution first hand - and its interesting to see the pangs of democracy's birth - and wondering where it will go.

Although the book spans a long period of time, it provides the most useful detail on the post independence period that has had the most impact on the US and the world post Soviet Union.

In that regard, the author does capture some of the challenges in the current situation and the importance of the battle of a westward looking nation that is the second largest in Europe. But in Ukraine in the post Orange Revolution, one does hear Ukrainian spoken more whereas under the Soviets, jail time for doing so was possible.

The book doesn't provide the detail on some of the controversial aspects such as the battle for survivial against collectivization and the Soviet man made famine that Robert Conquest documented in his book "Harvest of Sorrow." The impact of the Soviet murder of SEVEN to TEN million people, 25% of the nation's population, has left a scar on the nation that is only being discussed openly for the first time. A small memorial in the center of Kiev has been erected and certainly is less costly than any US based memorial to the victims of Stalinism.

Although the country has achieved its independence there are many problems in addressing its history as its had to fight external and internal enemies who have often sided with invaders. In the case of Western Ukraine, WWII brought about the first opportunity to rise up against the slaughter and genocide of millions of their countrymen in 1933. The NKVD, and its secret police predecessors was comprised largely of local Jewish nonprofessionals. There was no mercy shown to their neighbors in imposing communism and the following genocidal famine that followed. The story of the NKVD and of the communists secret police has never been told in Ukraine. Someday it will.

During WWII, Jewish doctors joined the Ukrainian partisan army to fight against the Soviets and Germans. As a country fighting the two biggest enemies of freedom in the 20th century, it wasn't an easy task but lasted into the 1950s.

As the accounting for the Soviet mass murder has hardly even started. It's unfortunate that the desire to build a memorial to its victims in the US would meet opposition. Particularly when the story of those who enforced and were complicit in the genocide on behalf of the Soviet evil have yet to be brought to account.

I believe this book was very well-written and fair in its evaluation of Ukrainian history. I based these comments in part on my Ukrainian descent; and my travels and discussions with Ukrainian citizens. The book does a better(and excellent) job of reviewing fairly recent events in Ukrainian politics and demographics; than it does in reviewing Ukrainian history - but that appears to be intentional. As an American, I noticed what appeared to be British colloquialisms in several places that I didn't understand.

Wow what can I say, Mr.Wilson has written a book that will set the standard for all future works for Ukraine. As a previous reviewer said, this book tells you what it is to be a Ukrainian. At sometimes it is a bit too dry and academic but any serious student should not let that get in the way of this otherwise excellent book>