I have long been interested in the rôle of the Jews in the development of Zagreb (“Zagreb and the Jews,” August 2, 2008). The lack of books on the subject strikes me as the proof of the thesis that it was precisely the Jews who developed the Croatian capital under the Austro-Hungarian empire. In short, Zagreb’s history must be too embarrassing for proud Croatian historians to investigate in any detail. Thus I was surprised today when I saw a book on the subject in one of the bookstores. Available in both English and Croatian, the book’s title seemed most promising: Jewish Zagreb.[1] When I looked into it, though, it turned out to be yet another picture-book, as is the case with many other books about Zagreb’s history. There was hardly any text in it, which is why I ultimately decided not to buy it. The promising title notwithstanding, the history of the Croatian capital remains to be written. Embarrassing as it will undoubtedly be, it will be a most pleasurable read.

Footnote

1. Snješka Knežević and Aleksander Laslo, Zagreb: Jewish Municipality of Zagreb, 2011.