Border : A Journey to the Edge of Europe

Worth three and a half stars. This book is equal parts history and human interest stories. The history of the once Iron Curtain border between Bulgaria and Greece and Turkey is told by relating the experiences of those who lived (and still live) along the border (for the sake of clarity I will call these people the characters of the book). Kassabova describes her journey along those borders which were once closed to her. The stories of others are related from her perspective (that is, as if the reader was being told these stories by those living along the border, but then interpreting the stories through the author‘s mind). I find this style creates a bit too much distance between myself and the characters so I never made any emotional connection with them. Nonetheless, the book is enjoyable and I did learn a lot about these border regions so I would recommend it to those interested in regional history.