Highly acclaimed and thoroughly updated, Return to Diversity, Fourth Edition, provides a comprehensive political history of East Central Europe from World War II to the present. An engaging and straightforward political narrative, the book is organized chronologically in a country-by-country format that students can easily navigate. Each section summarizes and examines the most important themes in Eastern Europe during the rise and fall of Communism. The text features balanced discussions of relevant political events, along with a detailed analysis of the causes and consequences of Communism from the perspective of post-Communist regimes.
Nancy M. Wingfield has revised the fourth edition to incorporate additional social and economic history into the text's strong discussions of political history. She also provides expanded coverage of the resurgence of nationalism in the 1980s, the role of dissident movements in the shift to democracy, and the problems of Communism. To make the region's history even more relevant to students, Return to Diversity now concludes with a compelling look at the contemporary reintegration of the "new" and "old" Europes.
Unsurpassed in scope, depth of analysis, and objectivity, Return to Diversity continues to be an invaluable resource for both professors and students of this region's vivid political history.

Written by one of the world's foremost authorities on East Central Europe,Return to Diversity has proven to be an invaluable guide to students of modern European history and politics. The addition of co-author Nancy M. Wingfield on the current third edition brought the expertise of another leading scholar to the book, with updates and a fully revised suggested reading list to reflect the most recent scholarship in the field. An engaging and straightforward political narrative, the book is organized chronologically, in a country-by-country format that makes information easily accessible to students. Each section features comments summarizing and examining the most important themes of Eastern Europe during the rise and fall of Communism. There are balanced discussions of every relevant political affair, as well as detailed analysis of the causes and consequences of Communism from the perspective of post-Communist regimes. The new edition will move to a larger trim size. Already heralded for its sound political scholarship, the fourth edition of RtD will now include more on how society and culture influenced the political events it discusses. There is an overall consensus praising RtD as one of the best if not the best textbook on political history on the market, and the fourth edition will continue in this tradition. The new edition will move to a larger trim size. Already heralded for its sound political scholarship, the fourth edition of RtD will now include more on how society and culture influenced the political events it discusses. There is an overall consensus praising RtD as one of the best if not the best textbook on political history on the market, and the fourth edition will continue in this tradition