Bosnia & Herzegovina - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

by Elizabeth Hammond

Culture Smart! provides essential information on attitudes, beliefs and behavior in different countries, ensuring that you arrive at your destination aware of basic manners, common courtesies, and sensitive issues. These concise guides tell you what to expect, how to behave, and how to establish a rapport with your hosts. This inside knowledge will enable you to steer clear of embarrassing gaffes and mistakes, feel confident in unfamiliar situations, and develop trust, friendships, and successful business relationships. Culture Smart! offers illuminating insights into the culture and society of a particular country. It will help you to turn your visit-whether on business or for pleasure-into a memorable and enriching experience. Contents * customs, values, and traditions * historical, religious, and political background * life at home * leisure, social, and cultural life * eating and drinking * dos, don'ts, and taboos * business practices * communication, spoken and unspoken

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction

168 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[أثير · Rating 3 out of 5]

Useful to a point, when not taking into account that you will be viewing Bosnia through the author's cultural lens.

[Jack Hrkach · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very briefly, this book attempts to do many things, all of them adequate, but none truly illuminating. The history of this troubled little land is fine but of course one could learn more in one of the several histories of the Balkans now published. The rest of the book is a series of short chapters (most of which, on my kindle, were indicated as one minute's reading time in duration) about customs, manners etc for the visitor or future inhabitant of the country. Fine again, but just enough to get you wondering what it would really be like when you get there.

As one who has recently discovered relatives that are Croatian but living across the "border" - these borders that have been re-drawn so many times by conquerors and occupiers - as well as one who is somewhat interested in visiting to meet them, I didn't read anything in the book that illuminates that one particular group, smallest of the big three in BiH as the author sometimes abbreviates it.

What I can tell from them is best capsulized in the answer to a question I wrote one of them, a smart young woman with very good written English. I asked (though I was fairly certain from earlier correspondence that I knew the answer), "What team are you rooting for in the World Cup, Bosnia/Herzegovina or Croatia?" She wrote back, "Croatia of course. We are Croatians."

I fear that what I did get from the book was apprehension about a visit, rather than excitement.

[Jack Hrkach · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you haven't yet read one, the Culture Smart series aims at people who want or have to visit and probably live in a place they don't know much about. There are chapters on economic conditions, manners, food, what to do and NOT to do to get along in such a society.

I have an intention to visit Herzegovina, as I have distant cousins there. But if I get there it will be a short visit, so about 1/3 of the book held little interest for me. However, the first 2/3 contains a history of, in this case Bosnia and Herzegovina, which of necessity includes a larger area, the Balkans, from the ancient Illyrians to Slavs to Hapsburgs, Napoleon, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Nazis, Tito, the break-up of the Soviet Union, and the terrible war in the 1990s that pitted Serbs against Croatians and especially the Muslim members of the community throughout the area.

It is not a happy history, to say the least, and reading it did not give me a burst of energy towards my visit, but it was enlightening. In fact I have read several histories of the Balkans and Hammond manages to tell the story clearly and concisely.

It's a very important area in the world, and one that continues to evolve (devolve?), so I recommend that you read it - at least the first two-thirds!

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is filled with valuable information. It gave me a deeper appreciation for the Bosnian way of life.

My wife and I can't wait to call Bosnia our home!

[Mjstrand]

Good concise introduction

We found very useful this brief, fast paced introduction to Bosnian culture, geography, language, politics, cuisine, and people. Well done.