I preface my review with the caveat that I am open to the argument that this book purports to make, and that I was hoping that this would be the book that, without bias, tackled the subject of how European societies were different from American societ(ies). No place in this world is perfect, but surely we can get some information on some things that are quantifiably better, some things that are quantifiably worse, and some things that are just different and you might or might not like depending on your personal taste. Unfortunately, I was disappointed to find that this book simultaneously provided little information and also proved itself a chore to read, not the least of which because of the author's own fondness for indulging a somewhat whimsical writing style.
The premise of this book is, on the face of it, to make a certain point or argument. It does contain the occasional table of numbers and draws on various quantifiable pieces of data. However at the end of it all, it is unclear whether the author's aim was to inform or merely to entertain with a cutesy style.
To be direct, the author seems to struggle with the fact that the reader of his book is not able to recall events from the author's own personal life experience. While certain facts are most definitely in the public domain and the reader can be expected to either know, or look up such things, the author often references people he supposedly knows, or conversations he had in discussing social issues, as though the reader were present during the event. It has the feel of your friend turning to you and saying "Hey remember when that happened? Boy, was that a trip, you know what I mean, right?" Except the reader was not there and cannot simply recall what took place and what feelings were evoked in that moment. Another review used the word 'manic' and the characterization is appropriate - perhaps it is the author's attempt at cute and artful writing to name a person, dive right into the details of a conversation where this person exerted some influence or effect on the author's personal life, then leave this subject without explaining why the author was listening to this person's advice, and why he was so compelled by what was said. Was the author compelled because it was his girlfriend asking him to relocate, or it was just some stranger with an opinion, but he was very fond of the geographic destination?
To further explain the 'manic' characterization, the author on occasion uses sweeping, dramatic prose to heighten the emotional tone of certain parts of the book. And while this would be a great opportunity to add emotional significance to whatever argument he is trying to make, instead, there is no argument, or point, other than the retelling of an event in the author's past that he found emotionally inspiring or thought-provoking. The author is certainly entitled to discuss his own experiences, however now I must refer back to my earlier point, that minimal context is provided for as to why such things are emotionally compelling. The author goes to the trouble of saying something was personally significant, but the reader is left to wonder why. The end result is that much of the work seems over-dramatized as though the author would be more comfortable trying his hand at a screenplay or musical.
Much of the book is written as if in attempt to refute an argument, and too often the author proceeds with his counter-argument without spelling out what it is he is refuting. He uses phrases like 'they will say ___'. Who are 'They'? Is he arguing against what he perceives to be common wisdom, or rather a view held by a certain group? It is as though the book is meant to be submitted to a few individuals that the author once held a debate with, and the rest of us are playing catch-up. We missed the first part of the debate, where the other side's arguments were submitted to the author.
People in this book are named, though usually by first initial only, and usually without context as to the significance of the person in the author's life. I could pile on further with this point, but it suffices to say that if the author had a coherent point or argument to make, he largely gets in his own way as a result of his writing style.
It is true that not everyone will find the author's personal touches as obnoxious as I did. However there are better examples of how to make your points clear while still being able to inject your own personal style or whimsy into your prose. I love a smartly written argument demonstrating a good sense of humor but too often I found this book irritating. I can only wonder if during the writing process, anyone took a draft of this book back to the author with comments such as "You're going to have to explain this part some more, the reader is not going to know who you are talking about, and why."
To be fair, there are still some interesting facts in there. The book is not completely without merit.
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