Serbian Dreambook

"The use of 'imaginaries' in scholarship helps determine the limits of 'what it is possible to think'; they provide raw material for narratives of various sorts and play a psychological and cultural role akin to discourse in shaping practical and creative endeavors. Anthropologist ^DvZivković (Univ. of Alberta, Canada) takes readers a long way toward a long overdue, fair-minded, and full analysis of the Serbian imaginary. Although one might argue that most national imaginaries contain many self-serving, exotic elements, ^DvZivković tries to convince readers that 'the stories Serbs tell themselves' are so 'bizarre, outlandish, and strange' that they deserve the more provocative collective title of 'dreambook.' The author's colorful examples and relevant analyses provide short courses on various Serbian cultural touchstones, such as archaeology and the hunt for ancient, non-Slavic progenitors, and the enduring megalomania of a 'Byzantine Commonwealth.' From the historian's point of view, this intriguing work does not so much explain Serbian politics as explain how Serbs explain politics, and it offers a valuable chronicle of what one might call the 'default settings' for the (domestic) representation of Serbian history. ^DvZivković's focus is the Milo^Dvsević period, corresponding to the bloody dissolution of Yugoslavia, although earlier and later periods call for similar treatment. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Most levels/libraries. —Choice"— J. K. Cox, North Dakota State University, March 2012

"I completely agree that dreams are 'a machine to think with,' and Serbian Dreambook is a powerful machine indeed."—Robert Rotenberg, DePaul University

"Anthropologist Živković takes readers a long way toward a long overdue, fair-minded, and full analysis of the Serbian imaginary. . . . Highly recommended."—Choice

"Serbian Dreambook is a must-read for all—graduate students and scholars in social sciences, even political scientists and journalists—interested in European identities, particularly southeastern European identities: how they are created, perpetuated, and sustained. It also contributes to the further understanding of present-day political realities in Serbia."—AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST

"[E]ssential for anyone interested in Serbian and Yugoslav history and Balkan studies more generally."—SLAVIC REVIEW

"[The author] analyzes the ways in which intellectuals contributed to and directly supported the nationalistic discourse of Milosevic's Serbia, relying on the Kosovo narrative of victimhood and exceptionalism."—WORLD LITERATURE TODAY

"Živković proves to be an engaging, but also well-informed, guide to ways in which certain key aspects of Serbian history, geography and culture are not only produced but also endlessly debated and assigned new meanings. Primarily addressed to readers in social and cultural anthropology, the book will also be of use to historians: the theory is sophisticated, but worn relatively lightly, with attempts to engage the lay reader. Quite lengthy endnotes provide necessary context and explanation for the uninitiated, as do a dozen or so suggestive illustrations."—English Historical Review

"[A] fascinating addition to Indiana University Press's series on 'New Anthropologies of Europe,' as well as a contribution to the broader academic literature related to the decline of the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Unlike most studies of this period, which focus on the larger ethnonationalist, political, and historical processes that divided Yugoslavia under the leadership of Slobodan Milošević, Živković draws attention to the private narratives that Serbian civilians used to make sense of their shifting roles and social realities in the new Serbia. In doing so, Živković reveals a complex matrix of ethnonationalist mythologies that were revised and reinvented by Serbian civilians in their efforts to come to terms with the lived experiences of political upheaval, war, and mass atrocities. 40.1 2013"—ORAL HISTORY REVIEW