Publishers Weekly
11/16/2020
Almost everyone can find something to hate about the rise of global trade, migration, and cultural diffusion, according to this deeply reported yet inconclusive debut. Calling antiglobalism “a justified revolt... has mutated into a rejection of progress itself,” Israeli journalist Eyal explores the resulting discontents, documenting European rightists railing against Muslim immigrants, Syrian refugees hoping to start over in Europe, Greek anarchists writing anticapitalist manifestos and preparing Molotov cocktails, the 2008 jihadi terrorist attacks in Mumbai, starving African penguins that have to be force-fed by humans because overfishing has destroyed their food supply, and disillusioned Pennsylvania Democrats who voted for Trump in 2016. Eyal’s vivid reportage (“being surrounded by neo-Nazis is just like being surrounded by sharks, except that there’s no cage”) is supported by intriguing disquisitions on the history of trade and empire. However, his evidence that the revolt is driven by religious, nationalist, or ideological “fundamentalism” opposed to liberal values is less cogent, and maps haphazardly onto the grab bag of episodes—including Brexit, the Fukushima nuclear accident, and the Sandy Hook school shooting—he surveys. This unfocused treatise comes up short. (Jan.)
From the Publisher
With dispatches from around the globe, Nadav Eyal explores why so many people are rejecting interdependence, even at a time when we need each other more than ever. The message is clear that we need to redefine the terms of our interdependence—to minimize the dangers, spread the benefits more broadly, and build a global community capable of confronting our collective challenges together.” — President Bill Clinton
"A well-written and thought-provoking account of the current crisis of globalization. Not everyone will agree with Eyal's interpretation, but few will remain indifferent." — Yuval Noah Harari, author of Sapiens
“In a world that is changing—politically, culturally, religiously, economically—more rapidly than we once imagined possible, Nadav Eyal’s Revolt offers a riveting and convincing argument that what is unfolding is an international revolt against globalization and the elites at its helm. At stake, he argues, is nothing less than progress itself. Revolt is the book we have long needed to spark a critically important conversation about the future of our freedom.” — Daniel Gordis, Koret Distinguished Fellow at Shalem College in Jerusalem and author of Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn
Daniel Gordis
In a world that is changing—politically, culturally, religiously, economically—more rapidly than we once imagined possible, Nadav Eyal’s Revolt offers a riveting and convincing argument that what is unfolding is an international revolt against globalization and the elites at its helm. At stake, he argues, is nothing less than progress itself. Revolt is the book we have long needed to spark a critically important conversation about the future of our freedom.
Yuval Noah Harari
"A well-written and thought-provoking account of the current crisis of globalization. Not everyone will agree with Eyal's interpretation, but few will remain indifferent."
President Bill Clinton
With dispatches from around the globe, Nadav Eyal explores why so many people are rejecting interdependence, even at a time when we need each other more than ever. The message is clear that we need to redefine the terms of our interdependence—to minimize the dangers, spread the benefits more broadly, and build a global community capable of confronting our collective challenges together.”
