Włodzimierz Borodziej is professor of History at Warsaw University, Stanislav Holubec is a researcher at the Institute of History of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, and Joachim von Puttkamer is professor of Eastern European History at Jena University and co-director of the Imre Kertész Kolleg.

• IllustrationsList of ContributorsIntroductionWłodzimierz Borodziej, Stanislav Holubec and Joachim von PuttkamerChapter 1Groping in the dark: expectations and predictions, 1988–1991 Philipp TherChapter 2Catalysts of the collapse and of the transition, 1989–1990Mary Elise SarotteChapter 3Poland and the collapse of the patron in 1989–90: as seen from the Polish embassy in MoscowWłodzimierz BorodziejChapter 4Tea with the primate: at the roots of political conflict in PolandJoachim von PuttkamerChapter 5Czechoslovakia’s year of decision: from the socialist revolution of 1989 to the ‘real’ revolution of 1990James KrapflChapter 6Talkin’ ’bout a revolution: on the social memory of 1989 in HungaryÉva KovácsChapter 7A transition to what and whose democracy? 1990 in Bulgaria and RomaniaBogdan C. IacobChapter 8 When the Slovenian Spring turned into a hot summerMarko ZajcChapter 91990: building democracy in Yugoslavia and the danger of war Marie-Janine CalicChapter 10Transforming industry: on the corporate origins of post-socialist nostalgia in PolandJoanna WawrzyniakChapter 11German reunification and the dynamics of migrationTim SchanetzkyChapter 12The party is over: the identities and biographies of Czechoslovak and East German (post) communists in the year 1990 Stanislav HolubecChapter 13Poland, the German question, and German unification, 1989–1991Włodzimierz BorodziejChapter 14The German question and its European solutionWilfried LothIndex