Living Behind the Iron Curtain

<p>This week David talks to Katja Hoyer and Lea Ypi about life under communism. East Germany was the most successful of the communist states of Eastern Europe, measured by economic prosperity and sporting success. Did the GDR ever really offer a model of how Soviet-style communism could give people what they wanted, including social mobility and consumerism? Why did it fall apart in the end? And how did the GDR experiment look from inside Albania, where Lea grew up? A conversation about freedom, dissent, paranoia and blue jeans.</p><p>Katja Hoyer’s latest book is <a href=" https://bit.ly/3B55wJS" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Beyond the Wall: East Germany 1949-1990</em></a><em>.</em></p><p>Lea Ypi’s prize-winning <a href="https://bit.ly/3pjv2IA" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Free: Coming of Age at the End of History</em></a> is available in paperback now.</p><p>To hear more about Rosa Luxemburg, <a href="https://play.acast.com/s/history-of-ideas/luxemburgonrevolution" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">this is from Season 2 of History of Ideas</a>.</p><br><p>Sign up to LRB Close Readings:</p><p>Directly in Apple: <a href="https://lrb.me/ppfapplesignup" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://apple.co/3pJoFPq</a></p><p>In other podcast apps: <a href="https://lrb.me/ppfsignup" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lrb.supportingcast.fm</a></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

Past Present Future · David Runciman