The War in Eastern Europe

"...it seems to me that the most important thing to know about the war is how the different peoples live; their environment, tradition, and the revealing things they do and say. In time of peace, many human qualities are covered up, which come to the surface in a sharp crisis; but on the other hand, much of personal and racial quality is submerged in time of great public stress." -John Reed, The War in Eastern Europe, (1916)

After returning from his trip to Western Europe following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, American journalist John Reed made his second trip to Eastern Europe in 1915. He was joined by illustrator Boardman Robinson, who contributed illustrations to The War in Eastern Europe (1916), in which Reed describes their experiences traveling through Greece, Serbia, Russia, Constantinople, Rumania, and Bulgaria.

Reed shows a first-hand account of the destruction and deprivation in this region, and offers a fascinating read for anyone interested in World War I, the Balkans, and its history.

JOHN REED (1887-1920), US journalist and activist, became best known for his writing about the Russian Revolution in Ten Days That Shook the World. Other books by Reed are: The War in Eastern Europe and Insurgent Mexico. He was a graduate of Harvard, wrote for a socialist newspaper, "The Masses," and helped found the US Communist Party. Reed died in Moscow, where he received a hero's funeral.