Reviews

Gr 6-8-The opening statement in the introduction, "Belarus suddenly gained independence in 1990 at the end of the Cold War," does not inspire much confidence in this title. While readers are correctly informed later that Belarus has been an independent nation "since the breakup of the USSR in 1991," the author dates independence incorrectly for a second time further into the text as, "in the late 1980s." It is unfortunate that these and other misstatements are found in this volume, which covers a wide range of topics including geography, history, political institutions, religion, and everyday life. The full-color photographs are attractive, but the rigid format of this series seems to confine authors to an encyclopedic style. Also, one must question the caption of a photograph depicting a group of students that states, "Of the 33 tertiary institutions in Belarus, 14 are located in the capital, Minsk." The term tertiary may be used in England, but it has no meaning for American readers, most of whom would do better consulting Belarus (Lerner, 1993). However, Levy's book does have information on important cultural figures that is not included in that title.-Elizabeth Talbot, University of Illinois, Champaign