A Guide to Communist Bulgaria is the first comprehensive study of the architectural, artistic, and material heritage of the People’s Republic of Bulgaria, featuring a wealth of photos and illustrations. The book was published by Free Speech International Foundation in three bilingual volumes with support from the America for Bulgaria Foundation.
Volume 1 includes the must-visit locations for anyone interested in the triumphs and failures of Bulgaria’s recent past: from Buzludzha—sporting Bulgaria’s “UFO”—and Dimitrovgrad to Stalinist Sofia and the monuments of the Northwest. Volume 2 surveys the most remarkable and oddest monuments and public art works of the Communist era. Volume 3 explores the traces left over by the Communist regime in Bulgaria: from abandoned military barracks and cinema halls to the failed megaprojects and the funny street signs.
A Guide to Communist Bulgaria is a team effort: Dimana Trankova is an archeologist and coauthor of several guides to Bulgaria’s historical and archeological heritage. Anthony Georgieff is a journalist and photographer, author or coauthor of several books on Bulgarian history and culture, and the publisher of Vagabond, Bulgaria’s English-language magazine. Georgi Lozanov is a media expert and journalism professor at Sofia University. Mihail Gruev teaches contemporary Bulgarian history and ethnology and is the chairman of the State Archives Agency. The three-volume series is available at local bookshops.
Photos: A Guide to Communist Bulgaria © Anthony Georgieff
