A political memoir by a key witness to the chain of events that would send the Balkan empire toppling, aided by notable figures like Slobodan Milosević . In the early 1990s, following a series of violent conflicts on Slovenian and Croatian soil, the two republics succeeded from Yugoslavia, which would later be followed by Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia. Mesić was member, later last head of the Yugoslav Presidency. His memoir details an intricately woven storyline, which analyzes events, personalities and motivations inside Yugoslavia, as well as in the international arena. Extensive notes and a short chronology assist the interested reader and scholar in disentangling the complicated plot.