This winter, new books by CEU's academic staff were published on topics ranging from law and literary fiction, to history and the developments in Ukraine and beyond. Peruse some of the new titles here:
The Everyday Makers of International Law, From Great Halls to Back Rooms
In March, CEU Legal Studies Professor, Tommaso Soave, launched his book, published by Cambridge University Press, at Harvard Law School and Columbia Law School. During the talks, attended by resident faculty and students, Soave discussed the promises and pitfalls of literary fiction as a tool for the study of international legal institutions.
This book offers a unique insight into the inner workings of international courts and tribunals. Combining the rigor of the essay and the creativity of the novel, Soave narrates the invisible practices and interactions that make up the dispute settlement process, from the filing of the initial complaint to the issuance of the final decision. At each step, the book unravels the myriad activities of the legal experts running the international judiciary – judges, arbitrators, agents, counsel, advisors, bureaucrats, and specialized academics – and reveals their pervasive power in the process. The cooperation and competition among these inner circles of professionals lie at the heart of international judicial decisions. By shedding light on these social dynamics, Soave takes the reader on a journey through the lives, ambitions, and preoccupations of the everyday makers of international law.
The Palgrave Handbook of Communist Women Activists Around the World
CEU Professor Emerita of Gender Studies and History, Francisca de Haan edited this handbook, which addresses the role of women in communism as a global, social and political movement, exploring their lives, forms of activism, political strategies and transnational networks. The book will be discussed on April 1 as part of a one-day conference at CEU: Women in International History: A Panel in Honor of Francisca de Haan and a Book Launch.
Comprising twenty-five chapters, based on new and primary research, the book presents the lives of self-identified communist women from a truly international perspective and outlines their struggles against fascism and colonialism, and for women’s emancipation and national liberation. By using the lens of transnational political biography, the chapters capture the broader picture of these women’s lives, unpacking the links between the so-called public and private, the power structures and inequalities of their societies, the formal networks and politics in which they were involved, and the informal connections and friendships that supported their activism both at the national and international level. Challenging androcentric and Eurocentric narratives about communism, this handbook reveals the active and significant roles of women in nineteenth- and twentieth-century communist movements and regimes, and highlights the importance of communist women in shaping the agenda for women’s rights worldwide.
Im Krieg, Ukraine, Belarus, Russland
CEU Gender Studies Professor and Democracy Institute Research Fellow Andrea Peto contributed to the German language volume Im Krieg, published by Spector Books, which combines 30 essays and conversations that published between 2016 and 2022 in the online magazine Contemporary History.
Russia is waging war against Ukraine, making Belarus a vassal state, spreading disinformation around the world and using the war to intensify repression and media manipulation of its own population. But what does it mean to be confronted with war? How is resistance possible despite ongoing and unpredictable repression? How does Russian disinformation work? This collection illuminates and analyzes the history and current developments of the dramatic events in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia from different perspectives.
