The ‘Second World’ in Contemporary British Writing

How the British have taken a second look behind the Iron Curtain since 1989

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The thirteen contributions to this collection all explore or exemplify the ongoing British interest in the socialist world before 1990. In autobiography, fiction, film, history, and lexicography, these chapters show how contemporary Britain is engaging with the past project to build socialism in Europe, and what this means for the present and the future of our continent. Contributions come from a wide range of disciplinary and geographical backgrounds, and the volume is further enriched by a short story especially written for this book and by an in-depth interview with the author of a recent popular history of the GDR. Together, these chapters offer a unique perspective into contemporary British writing on the ‘second world’ and the enduring fascination with the failures of futures past.