I Read, Therefore I Blog

The Blurb On The Back:

Since the end of the Second World War, we have moved from an international system in which war was accepted as the ultimate arbiter of disputes between nations, to one in which it was not. This remarkable book, which combined political, legal and intellectual history, traces the origins and course of one of the great shifts in the modern world.

The pivot was the Paris Peace Pact of 1928, when virtually every nation renounced war as a means of international policy. By 1939, however, that Pact looked like a naive experiment. Hathaway and Shapiro show that it was in fact the critical moment of a new attitude to war, and how it shaped the thinking of those who framed a new world order after 1945.

Though this is a book about the power of ideas and their impact upon history, it is peopled throughout by individuals who brought about these momentous changes. The Internationalists is a significant contribution to understanding international affairs, and how great historical changes come about.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Oona Hathaway is Professor of International Law and Political Science at Yale and Scott Shapiro is Professor of Law and Philosophy at Yale. This is a thorough and engaging look at the legal framework underpinning war as a means of dispute resolution and how the Grotius view of “might is right” was overturned with the 1928 Paris Peace Pact, which changed attitudes to the legitimacy of war and formed the basis of the modern international order.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Why do people fight wars?

- Why do people go to war?
- Is it ever right to kill another person?
- Can we solve problems without fighting about them?

This book looks at wars past and present and the reasons behind why people fight. Find out how wars start, and what happens to soldiers and to ordinary people who are caught up in them. Discover more about the history of peacekeeping organisations and the ways in which conflicts may be resolved without violence.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Ali Brownlie is a former humanities teacher who has written numerous books for children. Alex Woolf specialises in 20th century history and political books for children. This book for readers aged 9+ deals with the difficult topic of war and conflict but while there are some useful sections here, the way it deals with some major conflicts is superficial and I think risks being misunderstood by younger readers.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

On the centenary of Britain’s Balfour Declaration - promising a Jewish ‘national home’ in Palestine - comes a major new history of the Palestinians and Israelis.

In Enemies and Neighbours, Ian Black has written a gripping and timely account of the most polarising conflict of our age: the unresolved and unequal struggle between Arabs and Jews in the Holy Land. Beginning in the final years of Ottoman rule, he sheds fresh light on critical developments from the Arab rebellion of the 1930s and the watersheds of the 1948 and 1967 wars up to the present day. Drawing on a wide range of sources, from oral testimonies to Black’s own decades of reporting, Enemies and Neighbours illuminates a bitter conflict that shows no sign of ending - which is why it is essential that we understand it.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Ian Black is a visiting Senior Fellow at the London School of Economics and former Middle East editor for The Guardian. Published in 2017 to coincide with the Balfour Declaration’s centenary (although the book begins in 1882 and the arrival of Zionist settlers), this book provides a plain facts account of the struggle between Israelis and Palestinians that explains what happened but doesn’t elucidate on why, leaving me with half the story.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Today, globalism has a bad reputation. ‘Citizens of the world’ are depicted as recklessly uninterested in how international economic forces can affect local communities. Meanwhile, nationalists are often derided as racists and bigots.

But what if the two were not so far apart? What could globalists learn from the powerful sense of belonging that nationalism has created? Faced with the injustices of the world’s economic and political system, what should a responsible globalist do?

British-Iraqi development expert Hassan Damluji proposes six principles - from changing how we think about mobility to shutting down tax havens - which can help build consensus for a stronger globalist identity. He demonstrates that globalism is not limited to ‘Davos man’ but is a truly mass phenomenon that is growing fastest in emerging countries. Rather than a ‘nowhere’ identity, it is a new group solidarity that sits alongside other allegiances.

With a wealth of examples from the United States to India, China and the Middle East, The Responsible Globalist offers a boldly optimistic and pragmatic blueprint for building an inclusive, global nation.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Hassan Damluji is leader of the Middle East team at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and co-founder of the multilateral development fund $2 Billion Lives and Livelihoods. This book has some interesting ideas and sets out 6 principles to establish a “global national sentiment” that draw on ideas that make nationalism popular but leans into the fears of immigration and takes at face value the calls from billionaires to pay higher taxes.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Thirty years after the end of the Cold War, world peace is at risk again. The President of the United States has withdrawn from the disarmament treaty with Russia, Europe is disintegrating, China is surging forward and a wave of nationalism and populism is destabilising established political institutions and endangering hard-won liberties. Moreover, the coronavirus pandemic has brought into sharp relief the fragility of the global order and the speed with which it can slide into chaos.

In view of this dangerous and unpredictable state of affairs, Mikhail Gorbachev, the last great statesman of the 1989 revolution, has written this short book to warn us of the grave risks we now face and to urge us all, political leaders and citizens alike, to take action to address them. He focuses on the big challenges of our time, such as the renewal of the arms race and the growing risks of nuclear war, the new tension between Russia and the West, the global environmental crisis, the global threat of diseases and epidemics, the rise of populism and the decline of democracy. He argues that self-serving policies and narrow-minded politics aimed at the pursuit of national interests are taking the place of political principles and overshadowing the vision of a free and just world for all peoples. He offers his view of where Russia is heading and he urges political leaders in the West to recognise that re-establishing trust between Russia and the West requires the courage of true leadership and a commitment to genuine dialogue and understanding on both sides.

Now more than ever, the responses to the great challenges we face cannot be purely national in character but must be based on a collaborative effort in which political leaders put aside their differences and work together to advance the human security for all.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Mikhail Gorbachev was the last leader of the Soviet Union and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in reducing nuclear weapons and improving world peace. This book (translated from Russian by Jessica Spengler) is a short, shallow summary of the current crises facing the world (including nuclear armament, global warming, and the rise of populism) but lacks insight, practical answers and defends Russian aggression with ‘what-aboutism’.

WHAT IS AT STAKE NOW was released in the United Kingdom on 18th September 2020. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Egypt is one of the few great empires of antiquity that exists today as a nation state. Despite its extraordinary record of national endurance, the pressures to which Egypt is currently subjected and which are bound to intensify are already straining the ties that hold its political community together, while rendering the task of governing it ever more difficult.

In this timely book, Robert Springborg explains how a country with such a long and impressive history has come to find itself in this parlous condition. As Egyptians become steadily more divided by class, religion, region, ethnicity, gender, and contrasting views of how, by whom, and for what purposes they should be governed, so their rulers become ever more fearful, repressive, and unrepresentative. Caught in a downward spiral in which poor governance is both cause and consequence, Egypt is facing a future so uncertain that it could end up resembling neighbouring countries that have collapsed under similar loads. The Egyptian “hot spot”, Springborg argues, is destined to become steadily hotter, with ominous implications for its peoples, the Middle East and North Africa, and the wider world.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Robert Springborg is a retired Professor of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School and in this fascinating, informative and profoundly depressing book that’s clearly written and easy to follow he describes the structural factors that have played their part over the last 70 years in driving Egypt to the point of crisis where division is rife and government more repressive, inefficient and authoritarian.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Bringing warring parties to the negotiating table is the aim of any peace process. But what happens when those negotiations falter and conflict resolution fails? Is everything lost, or are there prospects for meaningful change in even the most intractable of conflicts?

In this insightful book, leading scholar-practitioner in conflict resolution Oliver Ramsbotham explores the phenomenon of radical disagreement as the main impediment to negotiation, problem-solving and dialogue between conflict parties. Taking as his focus the long-running and seemingly irresolvable conflict between Israel and Palestine, he shows how what is needed in these circumstances is not less radical disagreement, but more. Only by understanding what is blocking the way and by promoting collective strategic engagement within, across and between the groups involved can deadlock be transformed.

Rich in detail and accessibly written, this book introduces a new and as yet relatively unexplored frontier in conflict studies. Its wider application to other phases, levels and war zones holds out rich promise for extending conflict engagement in some of the world’s deadliest and most difficult hot spots.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Oliver Ramsbotham is Emeritus Professor of Conflict Resolution at Bradford University and President of the Conflict Research Society and in this dense but accessible book aimed at non-academics with little knowledge of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, he analyses why traditional conflict resolution strategies fail and argues that highlighting differences and radical disagreement is a more effective way to achieve success.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Once marginalized in the world economy, Africa today is a major global supplier of crucial raw materials like oil, uranium and coltan. China’s part in this story has loomed particularly large in recent years, and the American military footprint on the continent has also expanded. But a new scramble for resources, markets and territory is now taking place in Africa, involving not just state, but non-state actors, including Islamic fundamentalist and other rebel groups.

The second edition of Pádraig Carmody’s popular book explores the duamics of the new scramble for African resources, markets and territory, and the impact of current investment and competition on people, the environment, and political and economic development on the continent. Fully revised and updated throughout its chapters explore old and new economic power interest in Africa; oil, minerals, timber, biofuels, land, food and fisheries; and the nature and impacts of Asian and South African investment in manufacturing and other sectors.

The New Scramble For Africa will be essential reading for students of African studies, international relations and resource politics, as well as anyone interested in current affairs.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Pádraig Carmody is Associate Professor at Trinity College, Dublin and a Visiting Associate Professor at the University of Johannesburg and in this second edition of his book that’s quite academically written and at times repetitive in its themes but nonetheless interesting and informative, he examines the modern political scramble for Africa’s natural resources, the reasons for Africa’s strategic importance and what it means for Africa’s future.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Europe is facing its greatest refugee crisis since the Second World War, yet the institutions responding to it remain virtually unchanged from those created in the post-war era. As neighbouring countries continue to bear the brunt of the Syrian catastrophe, European governments have enacted a series of ill-considered and damaging gestures. With a deepening crisis and a xenophobic backlash around the world, it is time for a new vision of refuge.

Going beyond the scenes of desperation that have become all too familiar in the past few years renowned development experts Alexander Betters and Paul Collier break new ground by showing how international policymakers can deliver humane, sustainable results that are better for refugees and host countries. Drawing upon years of research in the field and original solutions that have already been successfully trialled, they outline a compelling vision that can empower refugees to help themselves, contribute to their host countries and even rebuild their countries of origin.

Refuge reveals how, despite the media focus on the minority of refugees trying to making it to Europe’s shores, 90 per cent of the world’s refugees live in developing countries, mostly in camps or in urban poverty. In light of this, their eye-opening book situates Europe’s refugee crisis in a global framework, offering a concrete diagnosis for a system that has, for too long, been institutionally broken.

An urgent and essential work, Refuge shows how we can act for both moral and practical purposes in order to deal with the defining challenge of our time.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

In this moving, compassionate and intelligent book Alexander Betts and Paul Collier analyse the decisions and structural problems that led to the flood of Syrian and other refugees trying to reach Europe from 2011 and propose an alternative innovative and yet pragmatic approach, putting it through the prism of the original crisis to highlight how things may have been different in a must-read for anyone interested in the subject.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Never before has diplomacy evolved at such a rapid pace. It is being transformed into a global participatory process by new media tools and new empowered publics. “Public diplomacy” has taken center-stage as diplomats strive to reach and influence audiences that are better informed and more assertive than any in the past.

In this crisp and insightful analysis, Philip Seib, one of the world’s top experts on media and foreign policy, explores the future of diplomacy in our hyper-connected world. He shows how the focus of diplomatic practice has shifted away from the closed-door, top-level negotiations of the past. Today’s diplomats are obliged to respond instantly to the latest crisis fuelled by a YouTube video or Facebook post. This has given rise to a more open and reactive approach to global problem-solving with consequences that are difficult to predict. Drawing on examples from the Iran nuclear negotiations to the humanitarian crisis in Syria, Seib argues persuasively for this versatile and flexible public-facing diplomacy; one that makes strategic use of both new media and traditional diplomatic processes to manage the increasingly complex relations between states and new non-state political actors in the twenty-first century.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Philip Seib is a professor of journalism at USC and in this fascinating book he describes how international diplomacy has moved away from a secretive, behind closed doors activity that the public are unaware of until the diplomats are ready to announce to an activity that’s increasingly carried out within and informed by the social media arena, necessitating a different range of skills and a more open approach.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.