Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present

An excellent book. Fareed is very balanced in his views. Definitely a book to add to your reading list.

Very good

I have watched Zakaria's informative show for years, but this is the first book of his that I've read. It turns out he writes the way he talks: he suggests a point or "thesis" on something, then he elaborates and logically builds his case while interspersing quotes or paraphrasing from a diversity of sources, and then he closes the argument by summarizing it while at the same time allowing for some flexibility in thought on his and our part as the listener or reader. The book, as a whole, follows that model, as do the chapters and thoughts within the chapters. That makes it easy - at least for me - to follow where he is leading us. Walter Isaacson's summary and "praise" of the book (can be seen before this review/comments section) hits the mark perfectly, so need to repeat it here. The book is a thorough but focused review of several revolutions - in the broadest sense of the word, i.e., to include societal bloodless revolutions, not just the bloody ones - starting with the Dutch in the 1500's, leading up to today, and why some succeeded and others did not. His position is that the world is currently in a turbulent and revolutionary and counter-revolutionary era with extremes on both sides of the liberal and illiberal spectrum. The way forward, he concludes, is to learn from history on what has worked and move away from the extremes. "Extremism may feel satisfying, but gradual reform more often produces enduring change.", he states, along with "work within the fabric of society, with actual communities and people, to educate, persuade, and convince them of your cause". In essence, he is saying (basing it on his historical analysis documented in the book) that gradual bottoms-up approaches are more successful than directed top-down approaches. And, very importantly, he adds "The greatest challenge remains to infuse that journey with moral meaning." I am in that same camp of thought in terms of the overall "end point" he envisions. The challenge I see is having a viable plan on how to get there. The problem I see is twofold: there is a high level of misinformation and mistrust in our society, and I don't see the group of true leaders - anywhere - that can help lead us to where Zakaria concludes we need to go. If anything, leaders (not just political ones) seem to be getting more and more entrenched in extremes. Perhaps in his next book Zakaria will present his thoughts on some of the elements of a viable plan to get to that "end point". Bottom line: a very valuable read that leads one to use our critical thinking skills. I

Very informative and of course well written ...very balances as always

clearly articulated.