Risen from Ruins


Book Description

In the aftermath of the Second World War, Berliners grappled with how to rebuild their devastated city. In East Berlin, where the historic core of the city lay, decisions made by the socialist leadership about what should be restored, reconstructed, or entirely reimagined would have a tremendous and lasting impact on the urban landscape. Risen from Ruins examines the cultural politics of the rebuilding of East Berlin from the end of World War II until the construction of the Berlin Wall, combining political analysis with spatial and architectural history to examine how the political agenda of East German elites and the ruling Socialist Unity Party (SED) played out in the built environment. Following the destruction of World War II, the center of Berlin could have been completely restored and preserved, or razed in favor of a sanitized, modern city. The reality fell somewhere in between, as decision makers balanced historic preservation against the opportunity to model the Socialist future and reject the example of the Nazi dictatorship through architecture and urban design. Paul Stangl's analysis expands our understanding of urban planning, historic preservation, modernism, and Socialist Realism in East Berlin, shedding light on how the contemporary shape of the city was influenced by ideology and politics.







The Rise and Fall of a Socialist Welfare State


Book Description

This book provides a comprehensive analysis of social policy in the German Democratic Republic (GDR, 1949-1990), followed by an analysis of the “Social Union”, the transformation of social policy in the process of German unification in 1990. Schmidt’s analysis of the GDR also depicts commonalities and differences between the welfare state in East and West Germany as well as in other East European and Western countries. He concludes that the GDR was unable to cope with the trade-off between ambitious social policy goals and a deteriorating economic performance. Ritter embeds his analysis of the Social Union in a general study of German unification, its international circumstances and its domestic repercussions (1989-1994). He argues that social policy played a pivotal role in German unification, and that there was no alternative to extending the West German welfare state to the East. Ritter, a distinguished historian, bases his contribution on an award-winning study for which he drew on archival sources and interviews with key actors. Schmidt is a distinguished political scientist.




After the Ruins, 1906 and 2006


Book Description

A collection of essays accompany this collection of photos of San Francisco following the 1906 earthquake and fire, juxtaposed with photos of the city today.




Untimely Ruins


Book Description

American ruins have become increasingly prominent, whether in discussions of “urban blight” and home foreclosures, in commemorations of 9/11, or in postapocalyptic movies. In this highly original book, Nick Yablon argues that the association between American cities and ruins dates back to a much earlier period in the nation’s history. Recovering numerous scenes of urban desolation—from failed banks, abandoned towns, and dilapidated tenements to the crumbling skyscrapers and bridges envisioned in science fiction and cartoons—Untimely Ruins challenges the myth that ruins were absent or insignificant objects in nineteenth-century America. The first book to document an American cult of the ruin, Untimely Ruins traces its deviations as well as derivations from European conventions. Unlike classical and Gothic ruins, which decayed gracefully over centuries and inspired philosophical meditations about the fate of civilizations, America’s ruins were often “untimely,” appearing unpredictably and disappearing before they could accrue an aura of age. As modern ruins of steel and iron, they stimulated critical reflections about contemporary cities, and the unfamiliar kinds of experience they enabled. Unearthing evocative sources everywhere from the archives of amateur photographers to the contents of time-capsules, Untimely Ruins exposes crucial debates about the economic, technological, and cultural transformations known as urban modernity. The result is a fascinating cultural history that uncovers fresh perspectives on the American city.




Berlin Unwrapped


Book Description

This guide to one of Europe's most exciting cities allows you to discover the most authentic local haunts, the facts behind the historic facades, and the best in culture and entertainment. With chapters on nightlife, museums, city sights, and the suburbs, as well as sections on Berlin's fascinating history, Berlin Unwrapped is a must for anyone who wants to savor the true essence of the German capital, offering a wealth of insider tips, both on and off the tourist track. Penny Croucher lived in Berlin for many years, working as a journalist, and developed a lasting passion for the city.




Present Pasts


Book Description

This book analyzes the relation of public memory to history, forgetting, and selective memory in three late-twentieth-century cities that have confronted major social or political traumas—Berlin, Buenos Aires, and New York.




City Without End


Book Description

This series comprises the saga of the universe next door: The Entire. Reviewers have called Kay Kenyon’s series "a grand world," "an enormous stage," and "a bravura concept." Titus Quinn has forged an unstable peace with the Tarig lords, enforced by the nanotech surge weapon he possesses. But it is a sham. In what the godwoman Zhiya calls a fit of moral goodness, he has thrown the weapon into the space-folding waters of the River Nigh. But now he must face his enemies from earth, where a small cadre plans to take the Entire for itself and leave the earth in ruins. In the fabled Rim City encircling the heart of the Entire, Quinn at last finds his daughter, now called Sen Ni. Despite their troubled past, he seeks her help against the people who would destroy the earth. But Sen Ni has her own plans and allies, among them a boy-navitar of the Nigh, who is willing and supremely able to break his vows and bend the world. Quinn casts his fate with the beautiful and resourceful Ji Anzi who, sent on a journey to other realms, now holds the key to Quinn's heart and his overarching mission. But as he approaches the innermost sanctuary of the Tarig, he is alone. Waiting for him are powerful adversaries, including a warrior whose chaotic mind will soon be roused from an eternal slumber. "Lush, captivating and entrancing." —SFF World "Truly a series that demands to be read. Only, be sure to start at the beginning. You don't want to miss a word." —Fantasy Magazine "The Entire and The Rose is without doubt one of the most fascinating sci-fi series on the market today. In City Without End, Kenyon elevates this series to new heights." —Pat's Fantasy Hotlist




The Aesthetics of Ruins


Book Description

This book constructs a theory of ruins that celebrates their vitality and unity in aesthetic experience. Its argument draws upon over 100 illustrations prepared in 40 countries. Ruins flourish as matter, form, function, incongruity, site, and symbol. Ruin underlies cultural values in cinema, literature and philosophy. Finally, ruin guides meditations upon our mortality and endangered world.




Beyond the Wall


Book Description

AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the ashes of the Second World War to the fall of the Berlin Wall, the definitive history of East Germany, "a fascinating, sparkling book, filled with insights" (Peter Frankopan) In 1990, a country disappeared. When the Iron Curtain fell, East Germany ceased to be. For over forty years, from the ruin of the Second World War to the cusp of a new millennium, the German Democratic Republic presented a radically different Germany than what had come before and what exists today. Socialist solidarity, secret police, central planning, barbed wire: this was a Germany forged on the fault lines of ideology and geopolitics. In Beyond the Wall, acclaimed historian Katja Hoyer sets aside the usual Cold War caricatures of the GDR to offer a kaleidoscopic new vision of this vanished country, revealing the rich political, social, and cultural landscape that existed amid oppression and hardship. Drawing on a vast array of never-before-seen interviews and documents, this is the definitive history of the other Germany, beyond the Wall.