Before we take a trip, I always try to come up with a reading list that connects with our upcoming destination(s). I usually gravitate toward my favorite genre – historical fiction. I find historical fiction helps make history more accessible and relatable. My husband is more of a non-fiction guy, but I don’t have the patience to get through A Concise History of Eastern Europe, so – historical fiction it is.

We’re getting ready to go on a Danube River cruise (our first river cruise) from Budapest, Hungary to Bucharest, Romania. This will be all new territory for both of us. I’m super excited to see this part of the world.

I can’t think without a map, so here’s our route:

Here’s my Danube River reading list:

The Invisible Bridge (Hungary)

An absolute doorstopper of a book at 786 pages. I was over halfway through when I realized I’d lost interest. But I’m not a quitter – I finished it on principle.

In a nutshell: the novel follows a young Hungarian-Jewish man whose life is upended by World War II. He fights to survive and hold on to hope as everything around him collapses.

For me, the story mattered less than the history it revealed. Hungary’s position in WWII was complicated – first an ally of Nazi Germany, then under direct occupation by 1944. Hungarian Jews, once well-integrated and culturally vibrant, faced mounting prejudice, restrictive laws, and eventually forced labor battalions like the one the protagonist endures. Their fragile sense of security lasted longer than in neighboring countries, but it ended in devastating deportations. Reading this book gave me a sobering glimpse into Hungary’s past – one that will shape how I experience Budapest while we are there.

Girl at War (Croatia & Serbia)

Wow. This one’s gonna stick with me for a while. 90% of the books I read end up getting donated or going to the used bookstore. I only keep a book if it really resonates with me. And this one earned a spot on my permanent bookshelves.

In a nutshell: Girl at War by Sara Nović is the story of a Croatian girl named Ana, whose childhood is shattered by the 1990s war. Years later in the US, she confronts the trauma and fractured identity the conflict left behind.

In 1991, Croatia’s push for independence sparked war with Slobodan Milošević’s Serbia. This book is a front row seat to the breakup of Yugoslavia. Neighbors and families split along ethnic lines. Daily life dissolved into shortages, air raids, and survival mode. Violence, massacres, and disappearances left scars that didn’t heal with peace treaties. Ana’s experiences show how war reshapes not just nations, but the identities of those who survive it.

Under the Yoke (Bulgaria)

Under the Yoke is supposed to be the seminal work of Bulgarian literature, so I gave it a try. And it was a tough climb for me. My mom always said to give a book as many pages as you are old before giving up, and I barely made it to page 55. Sorry, Bulgaria.

In a nutshell: the novel follows a Bulgarian village under Ottoman rule, exploring love, friendship, and moral choices while nurturing the dream of national freedom.

Even after only 55 pages, I caught the theme: the awakening of Bulgarian national consciousness and the sacrifices people were willing to make for independence. It’s a reminder that liberation movements often start quietly, in everyday lives, before they vault into history.

I Must Betray You (Romania)

Another one for my permanent bookshelf. I couldn’t put this one down. And I had a full on anxiety attack for the last 50 pages.

In a nutshell: I Must Betray You follows a Romanian teenager in 1989 who is blackmailed by the secret police into informing on those around him. As revolution brews, he must choose between survival and standing up for freedom.

Many years ago, I knew a man who had defected from Romania in the 1980s. I was a teenager at the time, and it never occurred to me to ask him about his experiences under Ceaușescu. Teenagers are dumb.

The book pulls back the curtain on Nicolae Ceaușescu’s dictatorship, where propaganda, shortages, censorship, and the Securitate (secret police) defined daily life. People were forced to inform on each other, and Western culture was banned or distorted. Yet even in this atmosphere of fear, quiet resistance endured – through forbidden books, shared music, and whispered conversations. In December 1989, protests in Timișoara spread like wildfire, ending with Ceaușescu’s swift downfall and execution. The point: regimes built on fear and lies can never fully extinguish the human drive for freedom.

The Last Green Valley (Ukraine – Bonus Read)

We’ll be in Bucharest, Romania for a couple of days, which is 162 miles from the border with Ukraine. That’s about as close as I want to get to a country currently at war. Under different global circumstances, I might be tempted to take a day trip so I could say I’ve been to Ukraine. But that will have to wait.

Slava Ukraini 🇺🇦

In a nutshell: The Last Green Valley tells the true story of the Martel family fleeing Ukraine during World War II, caught between the Nazis and Soviets as they try to survive.

Page 1, and I already learned something new. THIS is why historical fiction is valuable. The story begins in the Transnistria Governorate of Romania. The transnis-what-now? Some Googling later: the Transnistria Governorate was officially a Romanian-administered territory during World War II, but it was deeply influenced by German military goals. The governorate served as both a strategic buffer zone against the Soviet Union, and as a deportation hub for Jews and Roma. It collapsed in 1944 when the Soviet Union retook the region. Today, the region is part of southern Ukraine.

Sidebar: I share my newly gained Transnistria Governorate of Romania knowledge with Ken, and of course he already knows. Because: Ken.

The novel captures the massive upheaval of Eastern Europe at the war’s end. As the Nazi regime collapsed and the Red Army advanced west, millions fled with only what they could carry. Ethnic Germans like the Martels were mistrusted by both sides. Their story gives insight into how collapsing empires, shifting borders, and clashing ideologies turned Eastern Europe into a corridor of violence and displacement. It’s a testament to endurance in the face of chaos.

Wrapping Up (TL;DR)

The struggle for freedom and self-determination in Eastern Europe is nothing new. For centuries, the region cycled through occupations, authoritarian regimes, and imposed ideologies. Yet again and again, ordinary people found ways to resist – through quiet defiance, cultural preservation, or mass uprisings. Eventually, revolution comes.

Turns out: people don’t like a dictator.

Alright, I think I’m ready to go. As usual, I will post my travelogues and drinks reports once we’re home and I come up for air.

Cheers!