CROATIA: A History – From Revolution to Independence

The new book by Robin Harris, "Croatia: A History. From Revolution to Independence," is written as a synthesis of modern and contemporary Croatian history, covering the period from the mid-19th century to the creation of the modern Croatian state. Although one might expect such a synthesis to rely primarily on available literature, this book is largely based on the author's own research and insights into various aspects of the issues addressed within it. When existing literature is used, the author does not merely convey or summarize its content; instead, he approaches the subject matter critically and analytically, thereby arriving at new understandings of the topics he discusses. It is difficult to enumerate briefly all the topics Harris covers in this extensive synthesis in English, but it should be highlighted and reiterated that this is an excellent work. It addresses all the significant aspects of Croatian historical development from the mid-19th century to the creation of the modern Croatian state in a well-founded, objective, and critical manner. Nova knjiga Robina Harrisa Croatia: A History. From Revolution to Independence pisana je kao sinteza moderne i suvremene hrvatske povijesti, odnosno pokriva razdoblje od polovice 19. stoljeća do stvaranja suvremene hrvatske države. Iako sinteza za koju bi se očekivalo da se temelji u prvom redu na dostupnoj literaturi, ta je knjiga umnogome utemeljena i na autorovim vlastitim istraživanjima i spoznajama o nizu aspekta problematike obrađene u njoj. Kada se i koristi postojećom literaturom, autor ne prenosi i ne prepričava ono što je u njoj sadržano, nego problematici pristupa kritički i analitički te dolazi i do novih spoznaja o onome o čemu piše. Teško je ukratko pobrojati sve ono o čemu je Harris u ovoj opširno sintezi na engleskom jeziku pisao, no treba istaknuti i ponoviti kako je riječ o vrsnom djelu koje na utemeljen i objektivan te kritički način progovara o svim važnim aspektima hrvatskoga povijesnoga razvoja od polovice 19. stoljeća do stvaranja suvremene hrvatske države.