RaveFinancial Times[In] the manner of an anthropologist, she argues that the best way to understand a phenomenon (be that racism in America or anything else) is to step back and view it with a wider, comparative lens, instead of merely on its own terms ... Wilkinson concedes it will not be easy to change this situation. One problem is the lack of awareness ... But she does offer one faintly hopeful note: caste systems can sometimes crumble ... if repudiation of past assumptions is the first step towards healing, Wilkerson’s book offers a powerful frame for this ... It is essential reading for anybody who feels angry, guilty or threatened by the tangled issue of \'race\' in America today.
Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey
MixedFinancial Times (UK)...if you read She Said seeking a full account of the sordid Weinstein tale, you will be disappointed. The book focuses more narrowly on how the authors broke the abuse tale and handled the victims. It is an account of investigative journalism—or the story behind the story—as much as gender politics, or a corporate exposé. Irrespective of this, it is often moving ... The story also reveals the difficult, sometimes dispiriting, nature of investigative journalism and highlights the difficult moral choices produced by investigations ... The book has one weakness: it underplays the degree to which America’s legal system prevented the Weinstein company board from acting earlier to stop his abuse ... This point about corporate governance might not excite much passion among the wider public, and nor does it seem to interest the authors; their coverage of Weinstein’s corporate structure feels sloppy and incomplete. But it matters ... She Said helps to start this process [of fighting gendered abuse]; but there is still much further to go.
Michelle Obama
PositiveFinancial Times\"Some readers might smile at the schmaltz. But it serves a purpose: the book is dotted with tales about this complementary relationship — the delight they take in teasing each other over issues such as his smoking, or her need for control — and, if nothing else, it provides convincing signs that the Obamas have a genuine deep romantic connection and marriage. But Becoming also stresses that their family trajectory was no fairy tale ... If there is one big missing element from Becoming, it is clarity about what Michelle Obama will do with her powerful platform now ... But after 421 pages of Becoming, I closed the book hoping that one day she would use her formidable intelligence, humanity — and humour — to offer a more tangible vision for how America might fight the rising tides of polarisation and hate.\
Amy Chua
PositiveThe Financial TimesChua argues that this vision of the American nation has always been riddled with self-deception, since ethnic, racial and class loyalties have never truly disappeared in America, let alone anywhere else. And she argues that this has two important implications. First, Americans need to recognise that tribalism — in the sense of group identities — exists inside America and is becoming stronger today under President Donald Trump. Second, drawing on the example of McMaster, Chua argues that American leaders need to ponder the issue of tribalism on the world stage … This is an important book since Chua’s key argument is entirely correct: America’s leaders need to recognise that tribalism exists, and to think more clearly about the implications … Chua is right to argue that tribalism matters; what Political Tribes leaves unanswered is the crucial question of how America (or anyone else) can create a non-tribal world.
Naomi Klein
PositiveThe Financial TimesFor those who fall between the two poles, Klein’s polemical, activist tone can sometimes alienate. However, I hope that Klein’s book is read by more than just her (mostly) leftwing fan base. For whatever you think about her economic arguments, she makes a powerful and an important point: that you cannot understand Trump without looking at how he reflects bigger cultural and social dynamics. And what is perhaps refreshing about No Is Not Enough is that Klein tries to move beyond mere outrage and hand-wringing to offer a practical manifesto for opposition ... If nothing else, then, No Is Not Enough should make us all look at both Corbyn and Trump — as well as France’s Emmanuel Macron or Canada’s Justin Trudeau — in a new light. It might even spur more liberal observers to visit a WWE event; having recently done this for the first time myself, I can report that the experience does indeed help you make sense of Trump.
Thomas L. Friedman
PositiveThe Financial TimesWhat gives Friedman’s book a new twist is his belief that upheaval in 2016 is actually far more dramatic than earlier phases ... In two of the most engaging chapters, the author returns to the town and explains how it has created a relatively inclusive, harmonious and pragmatic style of government in recent decades...It is a wonderful sentiment. And it injects a badly needed dose of optimism into the modern debate.
