Three more books reach funding target to go OA through OtF at CEU Press

Posted by Tom Grady on Oct. 10, 2023 at 0900

Central European University (CEU) Press are pleased to announce the selection of another three open access books that have been funded entirely by library members of the Opening the Future (OtF) programme. Due for release in the next couple of months the new books will be freely available to download or read online (and also available to buy in print). 

The Press publishes new frontlist OA titles as soon as OtF funding is available on a one-by-one title basis - so we’re particularly pleased to have hit the target needed to bring these three books out soon. They are highly relevant to current global affairs and we hope to announce their publication in the coming weeks:

1. Ukraine's Patronal Democracy and the Russian Invasion, The Russia-Ukraine War, Volume One, Bálint Madlovics, Bálint Magyar (eds)

The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 jeopardises the country's independence and its chances for Western-style development. However, the heroic attitude of the Ukrainian people, combined with a solidifying national identity, makes the domestic foundations for a western turn stronger than ever. After the invasion, building strong foundations of liberal democracy will be a top priority. In addition to alleviating immediate problems, the country must also address its post-communist legacy and address the constraints of patronalism.

2. Russia's Imperial Endeavor and Its Geopolitical Consequences, The Russia-Ukraine War, Volume Two, Bálint Madlovics, Bálint Magyar (eds)

Aside from the near-complete devastation of a sovereign state and reversal of the global balance of power, the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 is leading to a radical transformation in the Eastern European and Eurasian regions – including Russia itself.

The 12 chapters in this volume examine the main geopolitical consequences of the resurgent imperialist aspirations of the Russian Federation.

3. Belarusian Nation-Building in Times of War and Revolution, Lizaveta Kasmach

The proclamation of Belarusian independence on March 25, 1918, and the rival establishment of the Soviet Belarusian state on January 1, 1919, created two distinct and mutually exclusive national myths, which continue to define contemporary Belarusian society. This book examines the processes that resulted in this dual resolution in the context of World War I and the subsequent Russian Revolutions.

Another 12 OA titles funded by OtF and already published are freely available to read and download via OAPEN, Project Muse, the ORL, and JSTOR, as well as via De Gruyter, ProQuest, EBSCO, and other partners:

  1. Words in Space and Time: Historical Atlas of Language Politics in Modern Central Europe, Tomasz Kamusella
  2. Constructing Identities over Time: “Bad Gypsies” and “Good Roma” in Russia and Hungary, Jekatyerina Dunajeva
  3. Staged Otherness: Ethnic Shows in Central and Eastern Europe, 1850–1939, Dagnosław Demski & Dominika Czarnecka (eds)
  4. Memory Crash: Politics of History In and Around Ukraine, 1980s-2010s, Georgiy Kasianov
  5. Everyday Life under Communism and After: Consumption and Lifestyle in Hungary, 1945–2000, Tibor Valuch
  6. Under the Radar: Tracking Western Radio Listeners in the Soviet Union, R. Eugene Parta.
  7. Policemen of the Tsar: Local Police in an Age of Upheaval, Robert J. Abbott.
  8. Free-Market Socialists: European Émigrés Who Made Capitalist Culture in America, 1918–1968, Joseph Malherek.
  9. The Historical Construction of National Consciousness, Selected Writings, Jenő Szűcs (author), Gábor Klaniczay, Balázs Trencsényi, Gábor Gyáni (eds.). 
  10. Rolling Transition and the Role of Intellectuals: The Case of Hungary, András Bozóki
  11. More Nights Than Days: A Survey of Writings of Child Genocide Survivors, Yudit Kiss
  12. An Older and More Beautiful Belgrade: A Visual Chronicle of the Milošević Era, Mileta Prodanović
What is Opening the Future?

Leveraging the collective contributions of academic libraries worldwide, OtF funds presses to publish new OA monographs, while libraries simultaneously benefit from access to closed content, and no single institution bears a disproportionate burden. For a modest annual fee libraries get DRM-free, unlimited access to a closed-access selection of the press' backlist, with perpetual access after three years. The press then uses the membership revenue solely to produce new OA monographs, moving towards an affordable, sustainable model for academic publishing and creating a collection of OA books that are open for the world.

How can your library become a member and support OA publishing at CEU Press?

See the website for a simple sign-up form, or for more information contact Emily Poznanski, CEU Press Director, on PoznanskiE@press.ceu.edu