Author Description

First published in 1994. In Poles Apart the author is trying to tell the story of Poland's democratic transition through the personal stories of the men and women that she first met in 1980. She hopes that by focusing on the experience of some of the key players she can expose aspects of the complex arguments surrounding controversial issues such as the imposition of martial law in 1981, the Round Table agreement between Solidarity and the Communist Party (which resulted in the first semi-free election in 1989) as well as examine the factors which precipitated the defeat of the post-Solidarity parties in the September 1993 election.