Customer Reviews

Not One More Death

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(Translating from Scottish dialect) the poet, Robert Burns wrote, 'Would some power had the gift to give us, to see ourselves as others see us.'
This small book unsparingly tells Americans what the rest of the world thinks of us, particularly after our invasion of Iraq. I have just returned from Europe. The disgust for us is palpable. Further, after 9/11 the world felt our pain, and there was international consensus to help us track down the ones who were responsible for that attack, to join us in the war against terror. Harold Pinter's Nobel Prize acceptance speech . . . I try to picture the faces of that distinguished audience as they heard it delivered.

This minor and slender volume proved to be a great disappointment. It is a collection of editorial screeds that lay all of the world's problems at the feet of America, excusing everyone else. Much of the content revolves around the various authors' hatred of George Bush. Their hatred is well founded but poorly expressed. Too many of the writers appear to be self-absorbed with their own assessed abundance of moral rectitude. Whatever flaws they may ascribe to the USA and George Bush collectively is weakened by their own bloated wordiness and frequent incoherence. Le Carre comes off as the best in an otherwise dulling book. What this book did provide me was a sense of the intellectual shallowness of most of the authors. Do not take this as an endorsement of Bush- one of our greatest national disgraces. Alas, reading this volume only enhances his stature. Professional caterwalling does not make for a glorious career.

Ronald m Michail