Since it first appeared in 1978, the Polish quarterly Krytyka (Critique) has been a showcase for some of the best writing on politics, sociology, cultural criticism, economics, and history from Poland. Founded by a group of oppositional activists that included Adam Michnik and Jacek Kuron, the journal began as an underground outlet for critical political thinking in the period prior to Solidarity. It survived the communist crackdown on Solidarity in 1981 to become the leading source of democratic thought in the new Poland. Today Krytyka is published ''above ground'' and continues to be the most consistent voice for a modern, democratic, and open Poland.

The twenty articles in this volume were chosen by Michael Bernhard, Henryk Szlajfer, and Jan Kofman, the present editor-in-chief of Krytyka. Covering the underground and post-underground years, they introduce the reader to the full range of topics and political views presented by the journal. Taken together these articles provide an excellent overview of the last fifteen turbulent years of Polish history.

Contributors are Marek Beylin, Ryszard Bugaj, Anna Bojarska, Krzysztof Jasiewicz, Stanislaw Krajewski, Marcin Kula, Jacek Kuron, Joanna Kurczewska, Adam Michnik, Edmund Mokrzycki, Piotr Ogrodzinki, Jerzy Osiatynski, Jerzy Surdykowski, Andrzej Werner, Wlodzimierz Wesolowski, Jan Winiecki, Krzysztof Wolicki, and Jozef Zycinski.