The Stories Old Towns Tell

A journey through Europes old towns, exploring why we treasure thembut also what they hide about a continents fraught history [A] fascinating chronicle.Benjamin Balint, Wall Street Journal Historic quarters in cities and towns across the middle of Europe were devastated during the Second World Warsome, like those of Warsaw and Frankfurt, had to be rebuilt almost completely. They are now centers of peace and civility that attract millions of tourists, but the stories they tell about places, peoples, and nations are selective. They are never the whole story. These old towns and their turbulent histories have been key sites in Europes ongoing theater of politics and war. Exploring seven old towns, from Frankfurt and Prague to Vilnius in Lithuania, the acclaimed writer Marek Kohn examines how they have been used since the Second World War to conceal political tensions and reinforce certain versions of history. Uncovering hidden stories behind these old and old-seeming faades, Kohn offers us a new understanding of the politics of European history-makingshowing how our visits to old towns could promote belonging over exclusion, and empathy over indifference.