Help me find more books like prisoners of geography.
December 29, 2015 6:15 AM Subscribe
Please recommend recently published short books on geopolitics that were pleasant, easy to read, and really smart.
Normally books on geopolitics do nothing but inspire me to put my head in the oven, but Tim Marshall's book Prisoners of Geography really lit the topic on fire.
I'm looking for is other books of a similar nature, possibly from different perspectives--but not necessarily (economics, culture, religion, or maybe just more geography).
Qualities this books has:
-It's short and the chapters are short.
-It has an smart, laconic style. Fun to read, isn't dry or too specialized, and the prose isn't weighty.
-Where historical context is necessary, it's briefly summarized in a playful way.
-The information is prescient. I can see examples in the newspaper every day.
-It is experience-based, rather than academic.
So far, I've tried Robert Kaplan, Jared Diamond, and Niall Ferguson. All great in their own right, but not what I'm looking for. Ditto the "Very Short Introduction Series" which isn't at all what I'm after.
I suspect it's the writing of foreign correspondents that will tick all the boxes, but I haven't a clue which ones or where to look..
Thanks for any recommendations!!
Normally books on geopolitics do nothing but inspire me to put my head in the oven, but Tim Marshall's book Prisoners of Geography really lit the topic on fire.
I'm looking for is other books of a similar nature, possibly from different perspectives--but not necessarily (economics, culture, religion, or maybe just more geography).
Qualities this books has:
-It's short and the chapters are short.
-It has an smart, laconic style. Fun to read, isn't dry or too specialized, and the prose isn't weighty.
-Where historical context is necessary, it's briefly summarized in a playful way.
-The information is prescient. I can see examples in the newspaper every day.
-It is experience-based, rather than academic.
So far, I've tried Robert Kaplan, Jared Diamond, and Niall Ferguson. All great in their own right, but not what I'm looking for. Ditto the "Very Short Introduction Series" which isn't at all what I'm after.
I suspect it's the writing of foreign correspondents that will tick all the boxes, but I haven't a clue which ones or where to look..
Thanks for any recommendations!!
Polish foreign correspondent Ryszard Kapuscinski is an author you could check out. I've read and been deeply delighted by several of his books, most notably The Shadow of the Sun, about several countries in Africa.
posted by Corvid at 12:44 PM on January 1, 2016
posted by Corvid at 12:44 PM on January 1, 2016
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A blog, not a book. John Burns is one of the NYTimes' best writers.
posted by SemiSalt at 1:16 PM on December 29, 2015