This book has been designed as a guide for foreigners studying in Poland. The preparation of such a book for this particular kind of recipient represents a much-needed and valuable initiative, as there are considered to be far too few publications of this kind.
For this book offers in an understandable and digestible form basic information on the past and present of Poland, with particular emphasis put on the areas of policy, society and the economy. A volume designed in such a way can serve students of both the social sciences and other fields, as they seek a better understanding of the country in which they find themselves, within the framework of an academic exchange.
It should be emphasized that all three parts here are on a high professional level, hence there is no doubt as to the presence here of specialists in the given fields, who have nevertheless made every effort to ensure that issues presented are accessible and understandable, as well as being carefully selected to ensure a good and wide-ranging outline of socio-political and economic issues in Poland. It thus remains for me to reemphasize the high professional level of this book, and the achievement it represents in and of itself, as well as in the way it meets a sore market need for an item of this kind.
