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Baltic Facades: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania since 1945
Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are often grouped together as the Baltic States, but these three Eastern European countries, tied together historically, are quite different. Although each is struggling to find its place within Europe and fighting to preserve its own identity, the idea of the Baltic States is a façade. In this book, Aldis Purs dispels the myth of a single, coherent Baltic identity, presenting a radical new view of the region.
Baltic Façades illuminates the uniqueness of these three countries and locates them within the larger context of European history, also revealing the similarities they share with the rest of the continent. He also examines the anxiety the people of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania feel about their own identities and how others see them. Giving equal weight to developments in politics, economics, and social and cultural trends, he places contemporary events in a longer perspective than traditional Cold War-inspired views of the region, tracing the countries under Soviet rule after the end of World War II through their declarations of independence in the early 1990s and their admission to the European Union in 2004. Baltic Façades is an enlightening look at these three separate, though related, Eastern European countries.
Baltic Façades illuminates the uniqueness of these three countries and locates them within the larger context of European history, also revealing the similarities they share with the rest of the continent. He also examines the anxiety the people of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania feel about their own identities and how others see them. Giving equal weight to developments in politics, economics, and social and cultural trends, he places contemporary events in a longer perspective than traditional Cold War-inspired views of the region, tracing the countries under Soviet rule after the end of World War II through their declarations of independence in the early 1990s and their admission to the European Union in 2004. Baltic Façades is an enlightening look at these three separate, though related, Eastern European countries.
203 pages, Paperback
First published April 15, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 8, 2016
As someone who was born in Soviet Latvia during perestroika, I was looking forward to this book uncovering the Baltic mythos. Instead I got a somewhat brief and repetitive retelling of the history of the three Baltic nations/republics. While I did learn more about topics such as the faulty interpretation of German arrival in the Baltics in the 12th century, or the National Communist movements of the 1950s, eventually I found that the title "Baltic Facades" is a bit of false advertising.
Instead of a thorough analysis of the Baltic area, the author mainly focuses on Latvia, mentioning Lithuania and Estonia merely to attract a larger reader audience. The author does discuss relative recency of the term "Baltic States" and how the three nations/countries have each experienced different histories and varied goals, though I expected to read a much more critical analysis of the concept. Instead, the author concludes on cautious optimism, possibly even a naive belief in the concept of the Baltics, causing a contradiction between the title of the book and its contents.
Instead of a thorough analysis of the Baltic area, the author mainly focuses on Latvia, mentioning Lithuania and Estonia merely to attract a larger reader audience. The author does discuss relative recency of the term "Baltic States" and how the three nations/countries have each experienced different histories and varied goals, though I expected to read a much more critical analysis of the concept. Instead, the author concludes on cautious optimism, possibly even a naive belief in the concept of the Baltics, causing a contradiction between the title of the book and its contents.
January 20, 2019
I agree with other readers on the fact that Baltic Facades is best read as an introduction to the recent history of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. As a beginner in this area of history, whose knowledge had mostly been informed by incomplete family history and a few online articles, this book was exactly what I was looking for. While the writing could be dry at times, I did not mind because this was all information I genuinely was interested in and wanted to learn.
Baltic Facades is broken into section based on different historical themes, such as politics and the economy. While this does lead to some amount of repetition, I didn’t mind it as a beginner in this subject. My favourite sections were those that described the way Soviet economics worked (or attempted to work), and how it impacted the Baltic peoples it was imposed on. I really appreciated how the author made sure to write about history in a way that didn’t omit details to conveniently fit into any one narrative. Politics is difficult and messy, and people are easily influenced by their emotions and the myths that they build up about themselves, each other, and the different countries they belong to. Purs never shied away from this in order to write an easier book, and I think that’s commendable.
It may sound like a juvenile suggestion, but I think this book would have been improved by added some charts and diagrams to make historical timelines a bit more digestible. By the end of the book, I felt I had a firm (if basic) grasp of recent Baltic history, but the reading experience would have been improved if I had some sort of visual tool to guide me. This kind of tool would be especially helpful due to the fact that this book describes not one history but three intersecting histories, and part of the mission of the book does seem to be to describe what the three countries did and did not share in the 20th century.
I recommend this book to others looking for an introductory but still detailed description of Estonian, Latvia, and Lithuania over the past century.
It’s also worth saying that it was the only book of its kind I could find in the otherwise exceptional Toronto Public Library system when I set out to look for Estonian history. There were older books in the reference library, some older books in Estonian, and a few others that weren’t what I was looking for. The author does mention near the beginning of the book that the majority of the work he used for researched is not in English, and that there is a small gap existing for this information in English publishing.
Baltic Facades is broken into section based on different historical themes, such as politics and the economy. While this does lead to some amount of repetition, I didn’t mind it as a beginner in this subject. My favourite sections were those that described the way Soviet economics worked (or attempted to work), and how it impacted the Baltic peoples it was imposed on. I really appreciated how the author made sure to write about history in a way that didn’t omit details to conveniently fit into any one narrative. Politics is difficult and messy, and people are easily influenced by their emotions and the myths that they build up about themselves, each other, and the different countries they belong to. Purs never shied away from this in order to write an easier book, and I think that’s commendable.
It may sound like a juvenile suggestion, but I think this book would have been improved by added some charts and diagrams to make historical timelines a bit more digestible. By the end of the book, I felt I had a firm (if basic) grasp of recent Baltic history, but the reading experience would have been improved if I had some sort of visual tool to guide me. This kind of tool would be especially helpful due to the fact that this book describes not one history but three intersecting histories, and part of the mission of the book does seem to be to describe what the three countries did and did not share in the 20th century.
I recommend this book to others looking for an introductory but still detailed description of Estonian, Latvia, and Lithuania over the past century.
It’s also worth saying that it was the only book of its kind I could find in the otherwise exceptional Toronto Public Library system when I set out to look for Estonian history. There were older books in the reference library, some older books in Estonian, and a few others that weren’t what I was looking for. The author does mention near the beginning of the book that the majority of the work he used for researched is not in English, and that there is a small gap existing for this information in English publishing.
November 17, 2023
Lively and informative about new neighbours.
Purs writes for the common man who wish to learn more about the history of the three countries than what you find in a tourist brochure. The author is not afraid to raise questions about what the reader must assume to be "accepted truths". Already in the title, he suggests that the Baltics are a facade that in reality hides three very different societies. In the text, he therefore consistently uses all three country names, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, even when he mentions them together.
Purs nevertheless provides a comprehensive presentation which in an effective way illuminates both coincident and different features of the political, economic and cultural development since the beginning of history (not just from 1945 as the subtitle states). A main theme is, reasonably enough, the rise of national movements in the 19th century, which culminated in short-term independence for each of the three countries after the First World War. But even in the occupation years 1940-1991 there was at times some local room for action.
In a separate chapter, he discusses the importance of national identity beyond language for the state and the individual, i.e. in areas such as music, art, literature. Not really, seems to be the controversial conclusion. Important cultural personalities have also been Poles, Belarusians, Jews and Germans. Purs also blames his own home country, Latvia, of preventing Russians from full social political participation. On the other hand, he fully agrees with the decision taken by the three countries to break their economic dependence on Russia after 1991, although many Western economists recommended the opposite.
Purs writes for the common man who wish to learn more about the history of the three countries than what you find in a tourist brochure. The author is not afraid to raise questions about what the reader must assume to be "accepted truths". Already in the title, he suggests that the Baltics are a facade that in reality hides three very different societies. In the text, he therefore consistently uses all three country names, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, even when he mentions them together.
Purs nevertheless provides a comprehensive presentation which in an effective way illuminates both coincident and different features of the political, economic and cultural development since the beginning of history (not just from 1945 as the subtitle states). A main theme is, reasonably enough, the rise of national movements in the 19th century, which culminated in short-term independence for each of the three countries after the First World War. But even in the occupation years 1940-1991 there was at times some local room for action.
In a separate chapter, he discusses the importance of national identity beyond language for the state and the individual, i.e. in areas such as music, art, literature. Not really, seems to be the controversial conclusion. Important cultural personalities have also been Poles, Belarusians, Jews and Germans. Purs also blames his own home country, Latvia, of preventing Russians from full social political participation. On the other hand, he fully agrees with the decision taken by the three countries to break their economic dependence on Russia after 1991, although many Western economists recommended the opposite.
July 25, 2023
3.5 stars
This was a really interesting read—I knew a little about Lithuanian history but next to nothing about Estonia or Latvia before picking this up. The first 60-80 pages (maybe more) out of 200 pages were about pre-War/during WWII. I wouldn’t have taken that out—it was definitely needed for context, but it did take up a sizeable chunk of the book. After that section, the book felt a bit unorganised—there were topic-focused chapters but within them, Purs would constantly switch between years and between the three countries sometimes in a single sentence. It did make it a little complicated because you’d be reading about 1980s Estonia and then suddenly discover the next page was going back to something in 60s Latvia, for example. I think in the chapters focused on history (in an event-to-event narration), it would’ve done a lot better in having the countries separated. Otherwise, on a whole, it was a really interesting read.
This was a really interesting read—I knew a little about Lithuanian history but next to nothing about Estonia or Latvia before picking this up. The first 60-80 pages (maybe more) out of 200 pages were about pre-War/during WWII. I wouldn’t have taken that out—it was definitely needed for context, but it did take up a sizeable chunk of the book. After that section, the book felt a bit unorganised—there were topic-focused chapters but within them, Purs would constantly switch between years and between the three countries sometimes in a single sentence. It did make it a little complicated because you’d be reading about 1980s Estonia and then suddenly discover the next page was going back to something in 60s Latvia, for example. I think in the chapters focused on history (in an event-to-event narration), it would’ve done a lot better in having the countries separated. Otherwise, on a whole, it was a really interesting read.
February 22, 2019
The best account I have encountered thus far on the nearest past in the Baltic region.
It's a tale of the similarities, but even more so of the differences of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. What led them to where they stood at the end of World War Two and how they evolved from there, first integrated in the Soviet Union and afterwards as they recovered independence in the 1990s.
Politics, economics, culture and identity are all considered and the problems moving foward into the 21st Century are laid.
Great starting point if you want to understand what the situation is in this region of the world.
It's a tale of the similarities, but even more so of the differences of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. What led them to where they stood at the end of World War Two and how they evolved from there, first integrated in the Soviet Union and afterwards as they recovered independence in the 1990s.
Politics, economics, culture and identity are all considered and the problems moving foward into the 21st Century are laid.
Great starting point if you want to understand what the situation is in this region of the world.
June 1, 2020
I became very interested in the three countries after travelling to Estonia for the first time two years ago. They were hardly mentioned in my history textbook back in high school, probably only once that they declared independence from the USSR first. Not until I travelled to these countries (again) this year that I really started to dig into their past. The author has raised an interesting point that the existence of the “Baltic identity” is something the Estonians, Latvia’s and Lithuanians don’t want to see as this reminds them of their “common past” ie. rule under the USSR. We often group these countries together, maybe for the sake of convenience, but ignore their individuality and fundamental differences. I regard this book as a beginner’s guide to these countries, and those interested should give this book a try.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews