Designed for secondary school and college student research, this work is a one-stop ready reference guide to the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991, the war in Bosnia, and the peace settlement. Combining narrative description, analytical essays, a timeline, biographical profiles, and the text of key primary documents, Rogel, a leading U.S. specialist on Yugoslavia and the war in Bosnia, provides information and analysis to help students understand the collapse of Tito's Yugoslavia and the causes and effects of the ensuing war. Six essays analyze the crisis, including a concluding essay that discusses the area's uncertain prospects for the future. Ready reference features include: a timeline of events; lengthy biographical profiles of 20 pivotal political figures in the crisis; the text of 12 key primary documents; a glossary of selected terms; and an annotated bibliography of recommended further reading. Four maps and selected photos illuminate the text.

Following a historical overview of the region through the 1980s are topical essays on the downfall of Tito's Yugoslavia; the war in Bosnia-Hercegovina; the myths, propaganda, and politics that nurtured the hostilities; and the international community's bumbling response to the Yugoslav crisis. Rogel focuses on local Yugoslav and international politics, which were responsible for the state's disintegration, the brutal war and ethnic cleansing that followed, and the uncertainty the peoples of the former Yugoslavia face at the end of the 20th century. Several of the key political figures featured in the lengthy biographical profiles are unknown in the West, making this an especially valuable source for student research. Primary documents include an excerpt from Zlata's Diary.