The Bottom Line
A former must-read for journalists traveling to the Balkans to cover the unrest in Yugoslavia, this travelogue is full of social and political commentary, history lessons, and attention to detail about life in Yugoslavia in the 1930's. However, Black Lamb and Grey Falcon is HUGE and the auther is often long-winded. Only for readers passionate about travel history and history in general.
Pros
- Good description of the historical political fissures in Yugoslavia
- Nice attention to architectural, historical, and political details
Cons
- Over 1,000 pages
- Takes a rather subjective view of history and of Eastern Europe
Description
- At over 1,000 pages, Black Lamb and Grey Falcon includes an index and bibliography.
- Sections cover Croatia, Dalmatia, Herzegovina, Bosnia, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro.
- Many have criticized Rebecca West for being "pro-Serbian" in her travelogue.
Guide Review - Black Lamb and Grey Falcon - Yugoslavia Travel Writing
It's possible that, if you're an avid student of Balkan history, you'll read every page of Rebecca West's Black Lamb and Grey Falcon with relish. I found it very good for some things (descriptions of landscapes, architecture, and even social situations), but rather subjective overall. Rebecca West, while she obviously writes from an educated background, spends too much time musing over historical figures' emotions (example, Diocletian's anxiety over a daughter married to an abusive husband) or the results of certain historical mysteries (the disappearance of Diocletian's sarcophogus). Given the long periods of unrest and even war in the former Yugoslavia, Black Lamb and Grey Falcon is interesting from a historical perspective, and also interesting from a female perspective. Better to leave it at home and read it at your leisure than drag it with you on your travels to the Balkans to compare Rebecca West's commentary to your own experience.
