- Paperback: 320 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd (7 July 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0141023171
- ISBN-13: 978-0141023175
- Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 12.8 x 2.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 600,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Review
"A first-rate journalist, Reid provides impressive evidence to support his hypothesis." --The Denver Post
"A lively, thought-provoking book." --The Seattle Times
"T. R. Reid is like that great teacher you once had who makes a potentially dull and ponderous subject entertaining." --The Miami Herald
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
"A lively, thought-provoking book." --The Seattle Times
"T. R. Reid is like that great teacher you once had who makes a potentially dull and ponderous subject entertaining." --The Miami Herald
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
How did Europe become a superpower while America wasn't paying attention? Here, American journalist T. R. Reid takes an enlightening tour of the United States of Europe' - the borderless collection of countries with more people and wealth than America. With his trademark wit and wisdom he explains the often-bewildering ins and outs of the European Union and the culture its nations have come to share - from the common pastime of America bashing and the kitsch joys of the Eurovision Song Contest to the skyrocketing success of the Euro, trouncing the once-mighty dollar in strength. And he tells many individual stories of this drama, including the astonishing takeover of all-American products by European companies, the English greengrocer who became a Metric Martyr' and of the new breed of twenty and thirty-somethings known as 'Generation E'. Essential for readers on both sides of the Atlantic, The United States of Europe is an insightful and entertaining guide to a New Europe that now makes the world's rules, whether America likes it or not
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First Sentence
The Lardburgers were going at it again. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
The Lardburgers were going at it again. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Given the general historical if not cultural disinterest of the US as regards Europe, this is a refreshingly frank analaysis of why Americans would do very well to pay attention to what is going on in the EU.
It's a book written by an American author and aimed principally at an American audience, and as such is very revealing about what the US - from government through businesses and corporations to individual citizens - knows and thinks about the EU, its member states and institutions. Reid explains that in some notable cases, major US corporations have seriously misunderstood or misjudged the EU with disatrous financial and reputational consequences.
In fact, so important is Europe as a market for American goods that it is the EU rules on product design, content and safety which have become standard in the US, even though the US own rules are less onerous.
The book is a cracking crtique of the conventional US attitude and is written in a lively engaging way. It is a very enjoyable read. However the author in my (admittedly European) view does make some mistakes of terminology and understanding which shows that a little extra research might have usefully been carried out. But this does not detract from the overall, important theme.
It's a book written by an American author and aimed principally at an American audience, and as such is very revealing about what the US - from government through businesses and corporations to individual citizens - knows and thinks about the EU, its member states and institutions. Reid explains that in some notable cases, major US corporations have seriously misunderstood or misjudged the EU with disatrous financial and reputational consequences.
In fact, so important is Europe as a market for American goods that it is the EU rules on product design, content and safety which have become standard in the US, even though the US own rules are less onerous.
The book is a cracking crtique of the conventional US attitude and is written in a lively engaging way. It is a very enjoyable read. However the author in my (admittedly European) view does make some mistakes of terminology and understanding which shows that a little extra research might have usefully been carried out. But this does not detract from the overall, important theme.
13 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I bought this book at the airport in Boston, and whilst not a book that one would expect to read in a single sitting it really enthralled me.
Being a European I found the insight into what American's thought about Europe very interesting, Mr Reid shows that whilst America is undeniably the world's military superpower they (the Americans) have not grasped the fact that economically they are no longer "top dog"
I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone interested in politics, and or economics.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
T. R. Reid's analysis of the U.S. and Europe is a generally fascinating book, introducing the average reader to some of the inner workings of European organisations that might otherwise seem incomprehensible.
It suffers, however, by being full of mistakes, at least in one section: the chapter in which Reid discusses the Eurovision Song Contest as a force that unifies his so-called "Generation E" contains at least six glaring errors in as many pages, including such wonders as a 1997 British "girl group" that ripped off their skirts and won (the actual year of Katrina & the Waves' vitory), an Austrian winner in 1977 (it was France), and yet another supposed victory by a German group called the Orthopedic Stockings (who participated in 1998 and came seventh). He also mentions Ireland's five victories in six years (it was four in five), and amusingly suggests Eurovision was once held in Manchester (presumably mistaking it for Birmingham).
I recognise that this is a small part of the book, and not one that really 'matters', as such, but it makes me wonder - if it's full of mistakes in this section, how can I be sure the rest of the material hasn't been as poorly researched?
In short, I was disappointed that something so well written could prove to be so unreliable. A little fact-checking would have gone a long way and saved Reid from the potential embarrassment of his European readers picking up on these minor glitches that nonetheless undermine the value of the whole.
It suffers, however, by being full of mistakes, at least in one section: the chapter in which Reid discusses the Eurovision Song Contest as a force that unifies his so-called "Generation E" contains at least six glaring errors in as many pages, including such wonders as a 1997 British "girl group" that ripped off their skirts and won (the actual year of Katrina & the Waves' vitory), an Austrian winner in 1977 (it was France), and yet another supposed victory by a German group called the Orthopedic Stockings (who participated in 1998 and came seventh). He also mentions Ireland's five victories in six years (it was four in five), and amusingly suggests Eurovision was once held in Manchester (presumably mistaking it for Birmingham).
I recognise that this is a small part of the book, and not one that really 'matters', as such, but it makes me wonder - if it's full of mistakes in this section, how can I be sure the rest of the material hasn't been as poorly researched?
In short, I was disappointed that something so well written could prove to be so unreliable. A little fact-checking would have gone a long way and saved Reid from the potential embarrassment of his European readers picking up on these minor glitches that nonetheless undermine the value of the whole.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Interesting and informative
Good book full of witty anecdotes which leaves the reader sufficiently satisfied that they have increased their understanding of the power, both potential and realised, of the EU,... Read more
Published on 20 May 2008 by NCM1
the best of a bad lot
As a Phd student in the EU's international presence I have been forced to keep up to date with the plethora of pop-academic books which have been published on the EU as 'a new... Read more
Published on 30 Jan 2007 by Euro Waltz
Readable look at Europe's superpower potential
This concise, well-written discussion of the new Europe is a useful introduction to the history of the European Union. Read more
Published on 11 Jan 2007 by Rolf Dobelli
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