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A French writer and politician, Servan-Schreiber described himself as an "agitator in ideas." Long before the formation of the European Union, in 1967 he published a book calling on Europe to pick itself up, economically -- or find itself a distant second to the United States. In The American Challenge, he argued against protectionism. "The evil is not the capacity of the Americans," he said, "but rather the incapacity of the Europeans." The book was an instant best-seller, eventually selling more than 3 million copies in 22 languages. Servan-Schreiber was later asked why his prediction of the United States dominating Europe didn't come true. "They listened to my warning," he said, and "did what I told them." He died November 7 from bronchitis after suffering for several years with a degenerative brain disease. He was 92. From This is True for 5 November 2006 Suggestions for further reading:
 By: Parag Khanna List Price: $29.00 Amazon Price: $19.14 Editorial Review: Grand explanations of how to understand the complex twenty-first-century world have all fallen short–until now. In The Second World, the brilliant young scholar Parag Khanna takes readers on a thrilling global tour, one that shows how America’s dominant moment has been suddenly replaced by a geopolitical marketplace wherein the European Union and China compete with the United States to shape world order on their own terms. This contest is hottest and most decisive in the Second World: pivotal regions in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and East Asia. Khanna explores the evolution of geopolitics through the recent histories of such underreported, fascinating, and complicated countries as Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Colombia, Libya, Vietnam, and Malaysia–nations whose resources will ultimately determine the fate of the three superpowers, but whose futures are perennially uncertain as they struggle to rise into the first world or avoid falling into the third. Informed, witty, and armed with a traveler’s intuition for blending into diverse cultures, Khanna mixes copious research with deep reportage to remake the map of the world. He depicts second-world societies from the inside out, observing how globalization divides them into winners and losers along political, economic, and cultural lines–and shows how China, Europe, and America use their unique imperial gravities to pull the second-world countries into their orbits. Along the way, Khanna also explains how Arabism and Islamism compete for the Arab soul, reveals how Iran and Saudi Arabia play the superpowers against one another, unmasks Singapore’s inspirational role in East Asia, and psychoanalyzes the second-world leaders whose decisions are reshaping the balance of power. He captures the most elusive formula in international affairs: how to think like a country. In the twenty-first century, globalization is the main battlefield of geopolitics, and America itself runs the risk of descending into the second world if it does not renew itself and redefine its role in the world. Comparable in scope and boldness to Francis Fukuyama’s The End of History and the Last Man and Samuel P. Huntington’s The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, Parag Khanna’s The Second World will be the definitive guide to world politics for years to come. “A savvy, streetwise primer on dozens of individual countries that adds up to a coherent theory of global politics.” –Robert D. Kaplan, author of Eastward to Tartary and Warrior Politics “A panoramic overview that boldly addresses the dilemmas of the world that our next president will confront.” –Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski, former national security advisor "Parag Khanna's fascinating book takes us on an epic journey around the multipolar world, elegantly combining historical analysis, political theory, and eye-witness reports to shed light on the battle for primacy between the world's new empires." –Mark Leonard, Executive Director, European Council on Foreign Relations "Khanna, a widely recognized expert on global politics, offers an study of the 21st century's emerging "geopolitical marketplace" dominated by three "first world" superpowers, the U.S., Europe and China... The final pages of his book warn eloquently of the risks of imperial overstretch combined with declining economic dominance and deteriorating quality of life. By themselves those pages are worth the price of a book that from beginning to end inspires reflection." –Publishers Weekly  By: Paul Freedman List Price: $30.00 Amazon Price: $19.80 Editorial Review: The demand for spices in medieval Europe was extravagant and was reflected in the pursuit of fashion, the formation of taste, and the growth of luxury trade. It inspired geographical and commercial exploration ,as traders pursued such common spices as pepper and cinnamon and rarer aromatic products, including ambergris and musk. Ultimately, the spice quest led to imperial missions that were to change world history.
This engaging book explores the demand for spices: why were they so popular, and why so expensive? Paul Freedman surveys the history, geography, economics, and culinary tastes of the Middle Ages to uncover the surprisingly varied ways that spices were put to use--in elaborate medieval cuisine, in the treatment of disease, for the promotion of well-being, and to perfume important ceremonies of the Church. Spices became symbols of beauty, affluence, taste, and grace, Freedman shows, and their expense and fragrance drove the engines of commerce and conquest at the dawn of the modern era.
 By: David S. Landes List Price: $18.95 Amazon Price: $12.89 Editorial Review: Professor David S. Landes takes a historic approach to the analysis of the distribution of wealth in this landmark study of world economics. Landes argues that the key to today's disparity between the rich and poor nations of the world stems directly from the industrial revolution, in which some countries made the leap to industrialization and became fabulously rich, while other countries failed to adapt and remained poor. Why some countries were able to industrialize and others weren't has been the subject of much heated debate over the decades; climate, natural resources, and geography have all been put forward as explanations--and are all brushed aside by Landes in favor of his own controversial theory: that the ability to effect an industrial revolution is dependent on certain cultural traits, without which industrialization is impossible to sustain. Landes contrasts the characteristics of successfully industrialized nations--work, thrift, honesty, patience, and tenacity--with those of nonindustrial countries, arguing that until these values are internalized by all nations, the gulf between the rich and poor will continue to grow.The Wealth and Poverty of Nations is David S. Landes's acclaimed, best-selling exploration of one of the most contentious and hotly debated questions of our time: Why do some nations achieve economic success while others remain mired in poverty? The answer, as Landes definitively illustrates, is a complex interplay of cultural mores and historical circumstance. Rich with anecdotal evidence, piercing analysis, and a truly astonishing range of erudition, The Wealth and Poverty of Nations is a "picture of enormous sweep and brilliant insight" (Kenneth Arrow) as well as one of the most audaciously ambitious works of history in decades.  By: Alec Mackenzie List Price: $18.95 Amazon Price: $12.89 Editorial Review: Since it was first published, The Time Trap, by internationally known authority Alec Mackenzie, has indeed become The Classic Book on Time Management, as proclaimed in its subtitle. Based on the theory that self-management is the key to handling the time crunch that we all face, it focuses primarily on Mackenzie's 20 biggest time wasters, such as telephone interruptions, the inability to say "no," and personal disorganization, and offers clear step-by-step ways to combat them. The updated third edition also includes information on time problems caused by technology, downsizing, and self-employment. Can't say no? Reluctant to delegate? Information overload? More and more people today are finding their time clogged up with endless activities and responsibilities, and their work lives spinning out of control. No matter how hard they try to get things done...there's never enough time! Now practical, realistic solutions to the problem are spelled out clearly and concisely in this new edition of the classic book on time management. The Time Trap shows readers how to squeeze the optimal efficiency-and satisfaction-out of their workday as they learn how to: ** recognize how human nature is usually the root cause of dwindling time Based on decades of research with businesspeople around the world, The Time Trap is filled with smart tactics, hard-hitting interviews, and handy time management tools. With a half million copies sold in previous editions, it's the most popular time management toolkit available. "Can't say no? Reluctant to delegate? Information overload?
More and more people today are finding their time clogged up with endless activities and responsibilities, and their work lives spinning out of control. No matter how hard they try to get things done...there's never enough time!
Now practical, realistic solutions to the problem are spelled out clearly and concisely in this new edition of the classic book on time management.
The Time Trap shows readers how to squeeze the optimal efficiency--and satisfaction--out of their workday as they learn how to:
* recognize how human nature is usually the root cause of dwindling time * pinpoint and combat the 20 most tenacious time wasters * avoid the technology trap and so-called ""time savers"" * choose realistic goals and regain control of their life * use time management techniques for professional and personal success.
Based on decades of research with businesspeople around the world, The Time Trap is filled with smart tactics, hard-hitting interviews, and handy time management tools. With a half million copies sold in previous editions, it's the most popular time management toolkit available."  By: Lewis H. Siegelbaum List Price: $39.95 Amazon Price: $31.96 Editorial Review: The automobile and Soviet communism made an odd couple. The quintessential symbol of American economic might and consumerism never achieved iconic status as an engine of Communist progress, in part because it posed an awkward challenge to some basic assumptions of Soviet ideology and practice. In this rich and often witty book, Lewis H. Siegelbaum recounts the life of the Soviet automobile and in the process gives us a fresh perspective on the history and fate of the USSR itself. Based on sources ranging from official state archives to cartoons, car-enthusiast magazines, and popular films, Cars for Comrades takes us from the construction of the huge "Soviet Detroits," emblems of the utopian phase of Soviet planning, to present-day Togliatti, where the fate of Russia's last auto plant hangs in the balance. The large role played by American businessmen and engineers in the checkered history of Soviet automobile manufacture is one of the book's surprises, and the author points up the ironic parallels between the Soviet story and the decline of the American Detroit. In the interwar years, automobile clubs, car magazines, and the popularity of rally races were signs of a nascent Soviet car culture, its growth slowed by the policies of the Stalinist state and by Russia's intractable "roadlessness." In the postwar years cars appeared with greater frequency in songs, movies, novels, and in propaganda that promised to do better than car-crazy America. Ultimately, Siegelbaum shows, the automobile epitomized and exacerbated the contradictions between what Soviet communism encouraged and what it provided. To need a car was a mark of support for industrial goals; to want a car for its own sake was something else entirely. Because Soviet cars were both hard to get and chronically unreliable, and such items as gasoline and spare parts so scarce, owning and maintaining them enmeshed citizens in networks of private, semi-illegal, and ideologically heterodox practices that the state was helpless to combat. Deeply researched and engagingly told, this masterful and entertaining biography of the Soviet automobile provides a new perspective on one of the twentieth century's most iconic--and important--technologies and a novel approach to understanding the history of the Soviet Union itself. |
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