Name: Prisoners of Geography
Rating: 4.022916666666666 (120 reviews)
ISBN: 9781501121470

Tim Marshall

First published in Great Britain in 2015 by Elliott and Thompson Limited.

Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World

Prisoners of Geography

Leonie

Below it is Manchuria, which the Russians would have to push through if they wanted to reach the Chinese heartland. The population of Manchuria is 100 million and growing; in contrast, the Russian Far East has fewer than seven million people and no indications of population growth.

The Chinese are determined to have Taiwan but are nowhere near being able to challenge for it militarily. Instead they are using soft power by increasing trade and tourism between the two states. China wants to woo Taiwan back into its arms. During the 2014 student protests in Hong Kong, one of the reasons the authorities did not quickly batter them off the streets – as they would have done in, for example, Ürümqi – was that the world’s cameras were there and would have captured the violence. In China much of this footage would be blocked, but in Taiwan people would see what the rest of the world saw and ask themselves how close a relationship they wanted with such a power. Beijing hesitated; it is playing the long game. The soft-power approach is to persuade the people of Taiwan they have nothing to fear in rejoining the ‘Motherland’. The Air Defence Identification Zone, the surfacing near US ships and the build-up of a navy are part of a long-term plan to weaken American resolve to defend an island 140 miles off the coast of mainland China, but 6,400 miles from the west coast of the USA.

China must secure the routes through the South China Sea, both for its goods to get to market, and for the items required to make those goods – oil, gas and precious metals among them – to get into China. It cannot afford to be blockaded. Diplomacy is one solution; the ever-growing navy is another; but the best guarantees are pipelines, roads and ports.

Diplomatically, China will attempt to pull the South-East Asian nations away from the USA using both carrot and stick. Too much stick, and the countries will tie themselves ever closer into defence treaties with Washington; too much carrot, and they may not bend to Beijing’s will. At the moment they still look across the Pacific for protection.

However, while President Putin is willing to use military power to back the regime, it should survive. Putin saw that Obama's lack of focus on Syria gave Russia an opportunity. It could reinsert itself into the Middle East, make Russia part of the solution to the Syrian problem, and try to link cooperation on resolving the crisis with the easing of sanctions against Moscow, which had been put in place following its annexation of Crimea.

It [ISIS] quickly became the ‘go to’ jihadist group, drawing thousands of foreign Muslims to the cause, partially due to its pious romanticism and partially for its brutality. Its main attraction, though, was its success in creating a caliphate; where Al Qaeda murdered people and captured headlines, IS murdered people and captured territory.

IS also seized upon an area that is increasingly important in the internet age – psychological space. It built on the pioneering work of Al Qaeda in social media and took it to new heights of sophistication and brutality. By 2015 IS was ahead of any government in levels of public messaging using jihadists brought up on the sometimes brutalising effects of the internet and its obsession with violence and sex. They are Generation Jackass Jihadis and they are ahead of the deadly game.

Hana 

All great nations spend peacetime preparing for the day war breaks out.

‘Give them an inch and they’ll take a mile’

‘Speak softly but carry a big stick’  president Theodore Roosevelt  maxim of 1900.

Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics

This was very informative and well laid out but I felt like too much information was being thrown at me idk it was ok.

Feyi Fawehinmi 

Great way to think about the world

Even the stuff you already know will be illuminated by this book. Geography and politics in one handy guide. Highly recommended

A journalist uses ten maps of crucial regions to explain the geopolitical strategies of the world powers.

Eitan Hershkovitz

A quintessential book for understanding the current geopolitical state of the world. I recommend this book to all of my American friends who were not forced to take geography in high school.

Jonathan Tysick

A fascinating and informative guide to geopolitics from the lens of physical geography. Very enlightening as to why the USA and Western Europe have been and are so dominant. A big takeaway for me was the damage that comes from drawing borders of nation-states while ignoring the physical geography therein (exactly what the European colonial powers did so often around the world). 

Also illimunating regarding issues facing the near future as shaped by the recent past. If you like politics, geography and history this will definitely be up your alley.

A blend of geography and history to explain geopolitics. Quick, fun, memorable read

Frank White

Lynn

2.5⭐️ rounded down. I was actually rather excited when I started this book. I loved history and geography in high school and was always bummed I didn’t end up studying it more so I hoped I could find a good starting point in non fiction to get me back into these topics. Sadly, this was not that. I can only imagine this book being properly enlightening and interesting if you’ve slept through the last 50 years of history, news, and/or never paid attention in school. This gives an extremely global and superficial look into the major themes of geopoliticics and some of the reasons behind the foreign policies of several governments of state. For me however, this book lacked depth, it lacked socio-economic and socio-geographic insights that go beyond the surface level. I did learn a couple things here and there, but I think the author tried to be too sharply witty, short and to the point to do the real complexities justice. I realise I might not have been the intended book for this audience, but it makes me hesitant to pick up “the power of geography” by the same author.

Matthew Royal

The basic thesis is obvious, and the author fails to build a coherent narrative based on geography. He has some very non-geographical political opinions that come off as fearful hysteria rather than adding to the topic of the book. 
I do like the observation about the inevitability of the development of civilization when there's wide, flat land with easily navigable rivers vs. the obstacles Africa has had historically due to its many waterfalls along its waterways. However, no coherent formula or mechanism was described for how technology and culture often overcome geographic factors. This book presents a thesis, doesn't support it well, and is only descriptive, rather than providing a prescriptive model for understanding new situations.
He adds a bit about space at the end that's pointless. An interesting discussion could have been about the geographies involved between points of interest: Earth, Mars, the asteroid belt, moons, la Grange points, etc.

Millie Roberts

Cristian Garcia

A wonderful book that made me think a lot, gave me a lot of "aha" moments and taught me how geography shapes our economies, societies and ultimately, our behaviour.
The book is divided into several maps (EU, NA, LATAM, Artic, Korea-Japan, India-Pakistan, Russia, China, Middle East, Africa etc) and each maps explain how geography affects the evolution of the countries there. The way the author has to explain complex situations is very didactic and easy to follow. This book gave me a holistic view on current affairs and at the same time, I could connect the dots and see the bigger picture.
Great reading.

It was a very interesting book to get an overview of modern geopolitics. Some chapters are better and more relevant than others. It provides a good framework for understanding what's happening these days. Clear explanation of environmental determinism.

I thought the maps were going to be more exciting. Probably the chapter about Russia is the most interesting. Many of the others (such as Latin America, Europe, Africa, ...) are not well explored.

I thought it was quite biased toward the US. 

All in all, I enjoyed reading and learning about geopolitics and how the environment of one's country can influence many things. I would recommend it!

Lavinia

It was a very interesting book to get an overview of modern geopolitics. Some chapters are better and more relevant than others. It provides a good framework for understanding what's happening these days. Clear explanation of environmental determinism.

I thought the maps were going to be more exciting. Probably the chapter about Russia is the most interesting. Many of the others (such as Latin America, Europe, Africa, ...) are not well explored.

I thought it was quite biased toward the US. 

All in all, I enjoyed reading and learning about geopolitics and how the environment of one's country can influence many things. I would recommend it!

Prisoners of Geography was a recommendation by a dear friend and even though it took me a while to finish, it is a pleasure to read. The author takes the reader through an overview of current and some past international conflicts by taking the geographical circumstances into account, explaining motifs, beliefs, and contradicting endeavours of different countries with an easily understandable language and humour peaking through.

The book is structured into chapters, dealing with different conflicts or parts of the world. Some of these are discussed in greater depth than others, which is the main point of critique I would have: Some of the chapters seemed rather like a rough sketch, not really going into enough detail to warrant being there at all. I would have preferred to see them discussed in another volume but in the same thoroughness as some of the bigger players were.

Tim Marshall manages to give the reader a solid overview of conflicts, that probably most have heard about but lack the knowledge to actually understand them. He seems to do that through red-white-and-blue tinted glasses at times, but it is still a very good, informational read that I was able to take a lot of new information from. I would describe this as being a decent point of starting to do more own research, it provides enough understanding to begin asking questions so to speak.

I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in basic political conflicts and geographical explanations, as it is well explained and also reiterates some better-known historical events, I would say there is no certain level of knowledge needed to enjoy this read.

Prisoners of Geography was a recommendation by a dear friend and even though it took me a while to finish, it is a pleasure to read. The author takes the reader through an overview of current and some past international conflicts by taking the geographical circumstances into account, explaining motifs, beliefs, and contradicting endeavours of different countries with an easily understandable language and humour peaking through.

The book is structured into chapters, dealing with different conflicts or parts of the world. Some of these are discussed in greater depth than others, which is the main point of critique I would have: Some of the chapters seemed rather like a rough sketch, not really going into enough detail to warrant being there at all. I would have preferred to see them discussed in another volume but in the same thoroughness as some of the bigger players were.

Tim Marshall manages to give the reader a solid overview of conflicts, that probably most have heard about but lack the knowledge to actually understand them. He seems to do that through red-white-and-blue tinted glasses at times, but it is still a very good, informational read that I was able to take a lot of new information from. I would describe this as being a decent point of starting to do more own research, it provides enough understanding to begin asking questions so to speak.

I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in basic political conflicts and geographical explanations, as it is well explained and also reiterates some better-known historical events, I would say there is no certain level of knowledge needed to enjoy this read.

 

Anna

Тема интересная, но по факту оказалось больше политики и меньше карт/географии, чем хотелось бы.
Текст показался неровным - какие-то части интересные, какие-то просто мимо прошли (Ближний Восток, например, изложен на редкость неудачно).

All leaders are constrained by geography. Their choices are limited by mountains, rivers, seas and concrete. Yes, to understand world events you need to understand people, ideas and movements - but if you don't know geography, you'll never have the full picture. To understand Putin's actions, for example, it is essential to consider that, to be a world power, Russia must have a navy. And if its ports freeze for six months each year then it must have access to a warm water port - hence, the annexation of Crimea was the only option for Putin. To understand the Middle East, it is crucial to know that geography is the reason why countries have logically been shaped as they are - and this is why invented countries (e.g. Syria, Iraq, Libya) will not survive as nation states. Spread over ten chapters (covering Russia; China; the USA; Latin America; the Middle East; Africa; India and Pakistan; Europe; Japan and Korea; and Greenland and the Arctic), using maps, essays and occasionally the personal experiences of the widely traveled author, Prisoners of Geography looks at the past, present and future to offer an essential guide to one of the major determining factors in world history.

Kaitlyn Wendler

A little long winded at times, but overall really enjoyed this book. I learned a ton about the history of how continents and countries were formed, what has allowed them to prosper, and what has held them back. I have a newfound perspective on the world and geopolitics thanks to this read. 

Kanan Khasmammadov 

Short summary for constraints of geography and geopolitics.

Prisoners Of Geography

Fatin Allen

What a marvel to read! I was so immersed in reading all the chapters and happy that there are also maps because duh I’m a bit nulle in geography. It’s a nevertheless well-written synthesis.

Jenna Kathleen

Far from "everything you need to know" regarding global politics. It's an ambitious task to try to summarize politics around the entire world: the history and geography behind it all. This feels like information gathered from different Wikipedia pages spiced with the author's opinion on politicians and just random things he thinks to be true but has not sourced. It's arranged by region so it's easy to follow. I'll throw in the extra star for that alone.

Lisa Miller

I liked this book for it's focus on geography and how it plays into current international politics and history. Compared to what I was taught in school, which was focused on ideology, it's interesting to examine that in certain areas due to geography some nation-states are always going to feel threatened. The 'solution' so to speak isn't an overthrow of a govt or a change in political system etc but actually a new trade route or new source of materials to exploit - which then has knock on effects to those who had the trade route previously or held the materials previously - there's always winners and losers. What I didn't like was how short this book was and how broad the topic, I doubt anyone could do it justice in one book, but that should be acknowledged. The title could have been one those "short introduction to" because that is essentially what it is. I also wonder about bias, the author is western and most of his book covers non-western territories.

Vanessa Au Yong

Nothing in it is really new. Its more like a compilation of information so you don't have to go around googling everything individually.

How did the USA become a superpower? Why do people go to war? And why are some countries rich while others are so poor? The answers to these questions and many more in this eye-opening book, which uses maps to explain how geography has shaped the history of our world. Discover how the choices of world leaders are swayed by mountains, rivers and seas - and why geography means that history is always repeating itself. This remarkable, unique introduction to world affairs will inspire curious young minds everywhere. Praise for Prisoners of Geography: "A fresh way of looking at maps . . . as guideposts to the often thorny relations between nations" - New York Times "One of the best books about geopolitics you could imagine" - Nicholas Lezard, Evening Standard

Our World Explained in 12 Simple Maps

Gem Koeman

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book!

I had limited knowledge of worldwide geography, this book explained the connection between the political and geographical landscape of the world.

The chapters on Russia, China and the Middle East were fascinating and I found myself taking lots of notes to help it all sink in.

The book even made me more interested in world news, following what is happening elsewhere and the reasons for it.

Again, I thought this book was worth the five stars. If you have even a glancing interest in geography/world politics, pick this up. 

Winny de Jong

Great introduction to geopolitics. You'll never look at a map, watch the news, or see politics the way you did before reading this book.

Prisoners of Geography Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World

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