Fractured Continent
Europe's Crises and the Fate of the West
12 September 2017
Description
An urgent examination of how the political, economic and social volatility in Europe will affect the world.
In President Obama’s effort to reshape America’s image abroad, he made overtures to the Islamic world, pivoted towards China and vowed to “reset” relations with Russia. What he overlooked, argues William Drozdiak, was the imminent crisis in Europe. The UK stunned the world by leaving the EU; in Germany, there is growing alarm that refugees are putting the country’s stability at risk; in Spain, a protracted economic crisis has spread disillusionment and damaged support for centrist political leaders; while Greece is a waystation for refugees fleeing Syria.
By speaking with world leaders from Brussels to Berlin, from Rome to Riga, Drozdiak describes the crises and attempted solutions. He asks where Europe can go from here and how the west can revitalise its key institutions like NATO and the EU. This is a timely, character- and narrative-driven book about this tumultuous phase of contemporary history.
Reviews
"A compelling and urgent alert that Europe’s creation of a peaceful community in place of a warring continent, may be unraveling. Great Britain is leaving. Other EU members are suffering from political and economic stresses and the burden of refugees fleeing conflicts and migrants escaping poverty. For the United States, a diminished Europe creates an alarming risk." — James Hoge, Senior Advisor, Teneo Intelligence
"This is the best book I've read on the recent turmoil sweeping through Europe--excellent reporting, beautifully written and sensibly, carefully analyzed. Everything that I would expect from a journalist/scholar like Bill Drozdiak." — Marvin Kalb, Edward R. Murrow Professor of Practice, Emeritus, Harvard University
"Europeans and Americans alike would benefit from heeding Drozdiak’s warning: That European unification may go into reverse and unravel due to blinkered nationalism on both sides of the Atlantic." — Politico.eu
"A veteran foreign correspondent views Europe’s current dilemmas and power struggles through a series of chapters written from the key capitals, including Berlin, Moscow and London." — Gideon Rachman, Politics Top picks of 2017, Financial Times
"... William Drozdiak’s fascinating book on Europe..." — International New York Times
"... a very good survey of what the European experiment is for and why we need to have an integrated Europe, both economically and politically." — The best books on The European Union recommended by Giles Merritt, Five Books
"Drozdiak’s book doesn’t read as an obituary but as a sombre plea to recognise the gravity and urgency of the problems facing Europe and, more broadly, the West." — 8 best books on European politics, The Independent
