Savage Continent

Savage Continent: Europe in the Aftermath of World War II (2012) by Keith Lowe. A sweeping look at Europe after the Second World War illustrates how the atrocities continued in the years after the fighting supposedly ended, with the legacy of war leaving physical destruction, displacement, famine, moral destruction and a landscape of chaos. At the same time, wronged parties seek vengeance, nations try for ethnic cleansing, and many nations sink into civil war. It's a sometimes-shocking story of how the legacy of World War II left many people in deep suffering, and of how the Western Allies failed to come to their aid. This is a deeply researched book which tries for fairness in examining a disturbing subject. Grade: A-