A Concise History of Bulgaria (Cambridge Concise Histories) (ISBN 0521616379)

Book Description:
Bulgaria is slated to become a member of the European Union in 2007, yet its history is amongst the least well known in the rest of the continent. Richard Crampton provides here a general introduction to this country at the cross-roads of Christendom and Islam. He traces its rich story from pre-history to the political upheavals of the twentieth century. The new edition includes the years from 1995 to 2004, a vital period in which Bulgaria elected its former King as prime minister and secured admission to the European Union.

A solid review of Bulgarian history:
This book provides a nice review of Bulgarian history, though at times it gets bogged down in a sea of place and people names, losing, for me the reader, the main thesis. I would like to have seen more time spent on ancient history, which was skimmed over quickly. And sadly, this book was written about ten years ago, just when change was rapidly occurring in Bulgaria. On the other hand, the information presented is generally quite accessible and presented in a balanced fashion focusing on important topics. Steven Mlodinow

Rich History of Bulgaria Covered Brilliantly:
It is not easy to write a concise history of a nation that is over 1300 years old but this account takes that time frame and boils it into an easy to follow account of the Bulgarians. One of the most important, yet unheralded, countries in Europe is dealt with in a manner that would make the Bulgarians proud of its history. Although embroiled in wars, external occupations and internal strife for much of its history; a rich and diverse cultural heritage has remained intact throughout Bulgaria. This history of Bulgaria should be read by any student of European history as it tends to unlock the rich vault of Eastern European history and its influence throughout the world.

Excellent review of Bulgarian history:
As other reviewers have already said - this book is surprisingly thorough. The author goes through the most important events in Bulgarian history and puts things very nicely in perspective, so that readers can get a good understanding of the driving forces behind these events.

Dense but Thorough:
You have to really want to learn about early Bulgarian history to enjoy this book. It's very data oriented & can be a little boring, as it is written in a typical academic style (and I AM an academic, so I know whereof I speak). However, I am traveling to Bulgaria this summer & after reviewing two of the more popular books on the Balkans, I opted to start with this one because other reviewers were less likely to accuse the author of have an "agenda." (e.g., read the reviews of Balkan Ghosts). I will probably end up ordering & reading Balkan Ghosts while I am on my trip, but I wanted some other background before I did that.

An OK history of a small Balkan country.:
Yes, I have been to Bulgaria and I actually know some Bulgarians in the Chicago area. This book serves the purpose of those trying to find out a little about this ancient country in the Balkan peninsula. Bulgaria has friendly people, lots of history, and possibly a good future. This book tries to summarize the past thousand years of history with an overview. As one of the previous reviewers have already noted, the Ottoman decades have not been covered in great detail, so readers may need to look elsewhere for this information. Altogether, this is an informative read for those trying to learn about this country and its people. This references a 1996 edition, and I think great changes have happened recently with this country. An updated edition would be nice.