Lennart Meri : vabaduse valus valgus

Lennart Meri – President with a capital 'P' – was already a myth during his lifetime. Lennart never went anywhere, Lennart arrived. Lennart never settled for a place in the backbench, he always placed himself among the prominent. His sayings became catchphrases among the people and anecdotes were made about him.

In a small and poor country, Meri played the role of a king with his own court of jesters and troubadours, favourites and underdogs, petty vassals and senators. He took particular pleasure in forcing the other actors to change roles unexpectedly.

No wonder, then, that many admired books have been written about him. Henn Põlluaas' work, however, looks beyond the myth with a critical eye, justifying the criticism with extensively researched source material. No excessive political correctness, no respect for mythology. Both Meri himself and the Estonian reader deserve, alongside panegyrics, an honest, unembellished treatment that exposes his mistakes and lies.