A timely, well-researched case for the necessity of Ukrainian victory.
Chowdhury, an analyst at the Global Policy Institute,surveys the geopolitical implications of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
During a 2004 visit to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv,the author notes, he was struck by the number of citizens who believed that their nation’s “future lay with the West and not Russia.” Yet, as he traveled into the countryside, he found a more nuanced story, encountering a minority Russian-speaking population who supported Russia; some even had family members working in Moscow. The author draws on his intimate familiarity with Ukrainian and Russian perspectives to make a convincing case for the strategic value of a Ukrainian victory to global stability. He argues that Ukraine represents a “bulwark against potential Russian escalations” as far west as Poland and Germany, and also addresses the humanitarian crisis spawned by the ongoing war in which Ukrainian civilians “face the daily realities of Russian aggression,” including bombings and abductions. The book notes the advantages of sustained Ukrainian support from Western nations, but also asserts that mere financial and military aid may not be enough, noting how the Russian government has navigated sanctions to find “new life” by undercutting oil prices. Chowdhury is pragmatic in his approach; for example, he recognizes the impact of the recent U.S. presidential election and offers an astute analysis of how the European Union could leverage a Russian victory to strengthen economic, military, and political ties with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. As the author of multiple books on geopolitical history and contemporary world affairs, Chowdhury offers a scholarly evaluation of the conflict, backed by more than two dozen pages of research endnotes. His learned analysis is enhanced by an engaging writing style that will appeal to general audiences; in addition, the book’s narrative overview of Ukrainian-Russian relations provides important historical context for readers unfamiliar with the region. If the war represents, as the author compellingly suggests, “the deepest crisis in Russian-Western relations since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis,” then this is a solid introductory book on its history and implications.
A timely, well-researched case for the necessity of Ukrainian victory.Pub Date: Aug. 31, 2024
ISBN: 9798894805092
Page Count: 370
Publisher: Fabrezan & Phillipe
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Alternately admiring and critical, unvarnished, and a closely detailed account of a troubled innovator.
A warts-and-all portrait of the famed techno-entrepreneur—and the warts are nearly beyond counting.
To call Elon Musk (b. 1971) “mercurial” is to undervalue the term; to call him a genius is incorrect. Instead, Musk has a gift for leveraging the genius of others in order to make things work. When they don’t, writes eminent biographer Isaacson, it’s because the notoriously headstrong Musk is so sure of himself that he charges ahead against the advice of others: “He does not like to share power.” In this sharp-edged biography, the author likens Musk to an earlier biographical subject, Steve Jobs. Given Musk’s recent political turn, born of the me-first libertarianism of the very rich, however, Henry Ford also comes to mind. What emerges clearly is that Musk, who may or may not have Asperger’s syndrome (“Empathy did not come naturally”), has nurtured several obsessions for years, apart from a passion for the letter X as both a brand and personal name. He firmly believes that “all requirements should be treated as recommendations”; that it is his destiny to make humankind a multi-planetary civilization through innovations in space travel; that government is generally an impediment and that “the thought police are gaining power”; and that “a maniacal sense of urgency” should guide his businesses. That need for speed has led to undeniable successes in beating schedules and competitors, but it has also wrought disaster: One of the most telling anecdotes in the book concerns Musk’s “demon mode” order to relocate thousands of Twitter servers from Sacramento to Portland at breakneck speed, which trashed big parts of the system for months. To judge by Isaacson’s account, that may have been by design, for Musk’s idea of creative destruction seems to mean mostly chaos.
Alternately admiring and critical, unvarnished, and a closely detailed account of a troubled innovator.Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2023
ISBN: 9781982181284
Page Count: 688
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2023
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A fierce, penetrating, and empowering call for change.
Artist and activist Vaid-Menon demonstrates how the normativity of the gender binary represses creativity and inflicts physical and emotional violence.
The author, whose parents emigrated from India, writes about how enforcement of the gender binary begins before birth and affects people in all stages of life, with people of color being especially vulnerable due to Western conceptions of gender as binary. Gender assignments create a narrative for how a person should behave, what they are allowed to like or wear, and how they express themself. Punishment of nonconformity leads to an inseparable link between gender and shame. Vaid-Menon challenges familiar arguments against gender nonconformity, breaking them down into four categories—dismissal, inconvenience, biology, and the slippery slope (fear of the consequences of acceptance). Headers in bold font create an accessible navigation experience from one analysis to the next. The prose maintains a conversational tone that feels as intimate and vulnerable as talking with a best friend. At the same time, the author's turns of phrase in moments of deep insight ring with precision and poetry. In one reflection, they write, “the most lethal part of the human body is not the fist; it is the eye. What people see and how people see it has everything to do with power.” While this short essay speaks honestly of pain and injustice, it concludes with encouragement and an invitation into a future that celebrates transformation.
A fierce, penetrating, and empowering call for change. (writing prompt) (Nonfiction. 14-adult)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09465-5
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 14, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2020
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