"A skilfully blended mixture of memoir, political analysis, and histor . Lendvai carefully traces the evolution of Austria's party politics and reserves his most trenchant criticism for the present day." -- Financial Times "Engrossing . fascinating. Even for those with no particular interest in Austria, this book is worth reading for the worldly wisdom with which Lendvai anatomises the workings of power.' -- Literary Review "In this book, Paul Lendvai does for post-1945 Austria what Stefan Zweig has done for fin de siecle Vienna. Read it." -- Ivan Krastev, Chairman of the Board, Center for Liberal Strategies "When Paul Lendvai writes about Austria, his gratitude is mixed with a touch of melancholy, and an enduring astonishment that both he and the country have made it this far .
[Lendvai] has known everyone with something to say in this country since the 1960s . The upheavals of recent years have confirmed that Austrian politics is not a place of safety . but Lendvai would very much like it to be."---- Suddeutsche Zeitung "One of Austria's most profound journalists . Lendvai takes no prisoners . Absolutely worth reading, and not only for those interested in history." -- Vorarlberger Nachrichten "With Lendvai, it's easy to use words like grand seigneur . a profound connoisseur of Eastern and Southern Europe .
who has mastered the art of political analysis . Based on interviews with more than 50 politicians and other public figures . the book . is to be understood as a 'wake-up call' . Lendvai sees things where others prefer to look the other way." -- Salzburger Nachrichten "Erudite and incisive, this unsparing but fair analysis of Austrian post-War politics by an insider-outsider is vintage Paul Lendvai." -- Shalini Randeria, President and Rector, Central European University Vienna "Fascinating and informative . as close and true and deep an account as you are likely to read.
If you want a sound grounding in modern Austrian politics, this book is the best place to start." -- Jildy Sauce "Lendvai . is today the doyen of Austrian journalism . personally acquainted with the great and powerful, both a prescient observer and a man on the scene . This book has it all, unfolding a moral picture of today's Austria via the lessons of the past-above all, a relentless study of the country's political class . If this dedicated and knowledgeable observer is right, Austria's struggle with itself will remain on the international agenda for some time to come." -- Neue Zurcher Zeitung "Paul Lendvai is a phenomenon . the most important journalist in Austria.
An ice-cold analyst whose takes on Eastern and Central Europe are second-to-none. A world-class journalist.' -- Karel Schwarzenberg, former foreign minister of the Czech Republic.