I am so excited to share this list of books on Eastern Europe – I can hardly believe it, but next week I will be boarding a plane and heading there for an adventurous two week trip with a precious friend (and another of her friends whom I’ve not yet met but I’m sure we will be great friends, too!)
In preparation of this trip I read. A lot. Some countries are easy to find books on (Poland and Germany), most of the other countries we will be in are not. So I thought it would fun – and hopefully helpful! – to preserve the list of books on Eastern Europe that I found to prepare for our trip. (well, my trip. I’m going to do my best to not be this huge history nerd!)
We will be flying into Hungary and making our way through Slovakia, Poland, Czechia, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and maybe a quick visit to Italy, before flying out of Hungary. Additionally, we have a 12 hour day time layover in London, so we will be making the most of that time, too.
These book recommendations cover all ages and difficulty levels. Two are distinctly Christian (They Looked for a City and Bright Valley of Love.) The rest are not.
BOOK IDEAS
Two children’s books on Hungary. Hanna’s Cold Winter is specifically on Budapest and the zoo. VERY short picture book, but based on a true story. Reading it made me curious if the zoo still stands, and it does and actually looks pretty interesting and is on our list to check out!
The Good Master would make a very fun family read aloud, it is mostly about family in the old country, but through the story shares much of day to day life and customs and traditions of Hungary.
Czechoslovakia split into two countries about thirty years ago, making it very tricky to find modern books on either Czechia or Slovakia. I did find With Love From Bratislava which is the memoir of a woman who moved there around 2018 and formed a new life for herself and her children as a recently divorced woman. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend the book, but did find it interesting given the lack of other books on the country.
The Life book on Eastern Europe was surprisingly interesting and full of history (inclusive of Hungary and Poland) up until the 1960’s. It would not be considered a living book, but I did learn a lot and enjoyed it.
And Judah was THRILLED to offer me one of his fairy tale books. Truth be told, he gave me about eight fairy tale books that told different stories for different countries we will be going to, but I rejected all but this one.
If This is a Man is specifically about the authors time imprisoned in Auschwitz. As we plan to visit there I wanted a book about that concentration camp. He captures much of the day to day life – the hunger, the cold, the daily labor, the cleaning of clothes and finding shoes. It is a hard but insightful read.
They Looked for a City is about Polish Jews who manage to escape before being imprisoned. (And how they come to know Jesus Christ to be their Savior.)
I think Bright Valley of Love is a remarkable glimpse at a very unique and sorrowful time in Nazi Germany – the hatred of the handicap. It wrestles with concepts like what makes a man a man, which Primo Levi also causes the reader to wrestle with that idea in If This is a Man. Bright Valley of Love is a short but powerful Christian biography.
The First Book of West Germany is a children’s book in that well loved First Book series. I wouldn’t go out of my way for this book, but it’s one I had and skimmed.
I’m sure I could have done a better job prepping for Austria, but I landed on this children’s biography of Johannes Brahm. There are SO many composers or artists – or the Sound of Music!! that I could have read but did not. I am woefully ignorant on Austria.
Venice is just a maybe on our itinerary, but both of these are gems. It’s actually been years since I’ve read Komroff’s book on Marco Polo but distinctly recall him writing about Venice. And this sketchbook was a happy thrift store find and truly so lovely and inspiring!
Finally, I could not find ANYTHING on Slovenia specifically, but did find this children’s book on that region and it gives a history of the many wars and land divisions that have been there over the centuries. The book was published in 2000.
It’s too late for me to add anything new to read between now and when I leave, but if you have suggestions for books on Eastern Europe I would love to hear them! Especially for those harder to find countries.
MOVIES ON EASTERN EUROPE
In addition to these books, I watched a handful of movies on a few of these countries. These include:
American Rhapsody – based on a true story, a family escapes communist Hungary in the 1950’s
Beneath the Mysterious Canals of Venice -found on YouTube, from the History Channel
Jakob the Liar – takes place during WWII in Poland Ghettos
The Book Thief – WWII Germany
And while this next one isn’t anywhere we are visiting, it was a very interesting find and history lesson on a battle in the alps between the Italians and the Austro-Hungarian Empire during WWI. The music video is by a heavy metal band, and while that’s not my music taste, I think this is excellent and a worthwhile watch and remembrance of history.
