PositiveThe New York Times Book Review... a helpful contribution to this growing field ... Although Colley’s discussion of precisely how warfare precipitated constitutional development is somewhat unsystematic, she does lay out some important connections between warfare and constitutional development ... Unfortunately, despite the geographical breadth of The Gun, the Ship, and the Pen, Colley fails to explain how constitutions changed across time and space ... Nonetheless, The Gun, the Ship, and the Pen has important lessons for anyone interested in political development today. One is the value of taking a long-term perspective when trying to understand contemporary events ... At a time when many are questioning the future of democracy, it is worth remembering how important and precious these things are.
Anne Applebaum
PositiveThe Washington PostHer historical expertise and knowledge of contemporary Europe and the United States illuminate what is eternal and distinctive about the political perils facing us today ... Twilight of Democracy offers many lessons on the long-standing struggle between democracy and dictatorship. But perhaps the most important is how fragile democracy is: Its survival depends on choices made every day by elites and ordinary people.
Madeleine Albright
PositiveThe New York Times Book ReviewIn Fascism: A Warning Albright (with Bill Woodward) draws on her personal history, government experience and conversations with Georgetown students to assess current dangers and how to deal with them. Albright does this via an examination of cases in Europe and America from World War I through the present day ... Albright worries that Trump’s isolationism, protectionism and fondness for dictators are eroding America’s ability to lead and help solve international challenges, deepening divisions within the West and emboldening antidemocratic forces. Despite all this, Albright is hopeful. She ends her book referencing leaders like Abraham Lincoln and Nelson Mandela, who helped their countries move past periods of intense violence and division. Democracy’s problems can, Albright assures us, be overcome — but only if we recognize history’s lessons and never take democracy for granted.
Yanis Varoufakis
MixedThe Washington PostOstensibly it is a nonfiction account by former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis of his negotiations with the Troika (the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund) over the Greek debt crisis ...reads like a novel centered on a globetrotting, motorcycle-riding hero fighting the forces of darkness and ignorance ...story of an academic idealist who became involved in deep political battles for which he had little understanding or sympathy ... Much of Adults in the Room is taken up with Varoufakis’s explanation of this failure. Convinced of his plan’s economic and moral superiority, Varoufakis emphasizes his opponents’ stupidity and immorality ...approached negotiations as an academic, convinced that with facts and decency on his side, any argument could be won; he was unaware of and uninterested in the political calculations guiding his opponents ...hard to read this book and not feel immensely worried about Europe.
