Rating: 
Summary: Tons of insight and information
Review: To start with, I must admit I am no expert in foreign affairs, etc. I am just a regular guy who keeps up with the news and tries to be aware of the meaning of what happens in the world. Though many will probably think I should be embarrassed to admit it, I honestly had never HEARD of Thomas Friedman 2 months ago. Then I heard an interview with him on NPR and thought it was very insightful. He plugged his book and made a mental note to check it out. When I saw it in a bookstore a few days later, I bought it. Had I not heard the NPR interview, I probably would not have given it a second glance. I'm GLAD I did. From the perspective of a non-expert, this book was almost exhilarating in its insights and information. I grew a great deal in my understanding of the Middle East, its politics and culture, and its relationship with the rest of the world, as well as the key players (esp. Ariel Sharon, Yassir Arafat, Saudi Arabi, etc.). I could list a dozen "things I learned," but the main thing I drew from the book was the cultural and political CONTEXT in which 9/11, and the events since then, happened. If there is a fault, it is that the book is quite repetitive. The book is a collection of columns Friedman published in the New York Times, for which he won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary. It's tough not to respect that, but frankly, I occasionally began thinking maybe the guy does not have enough new ideas to develop, that he must constantly go back to the same couple of major points in column after column.
Rating:
Summary: Perfectly encapsulated knowledge and wisdom.
Review: This book is a perfect follow up to The Lexus And The Olive Tree.
A collection of NYT columns before and after 9/11, and a small personal commentary on it all, Friedman captures all the rage, the search for meaning, the demand for justice....he gets it all in there. He says everything you've thought. He also presents the dilemma of the middle east in easy-to-understand terms, which is more difficult than it sounds. Thoughout his writing is an anger--anger against the politics and the fundamentalist extremists of the middle east, and also anger against the same of the US.
He's the first one I've read so far to intelligently take President Bush to task for his lack of foreign affairs skill and his embarrassing butt-kissing of oil and big business. Bush is the first president in the history of the United States who has never read the Constitution.
Friedman's anger is tempered by his love of America and his pride of our freedom, and this constantly shows through in brilliant rays throughout the book.
If you only want to know a little bit more about the current world
this book will satisfy greatly. If you want deep insight into the problem of the middle east and terrorism, this book will fascinate.
Rating: 
Summary: Great compilation of columns and ideas
Review: Having read Lexus and the Olive Tree and parts of From Beruit to Jerusalem by Friedman, when I saw he had a new book out, I automatically picked it up. This book is a complilation of Friedman's columns published in the NY Times, some dating from pre-Sept. 11 through July 3, 2002, and some of Friedman's ideas that hadn't been worked into his columns. This book is easy to read and easy follow. As most of the book is in two page sections, it can be read article at a time, or group of articles at a time-- depending on how much time the reader has to devote at any given moment. I found this book interesting as a post-Sept 11 narative because Friedman managed to express some emotions that I felt during the late 2001 and early 2002, but they were feelings that either I couldn't identify or had no outlet of my own. It was also interesting because Friedman describes his contact with specific people; I found his descriptions disturbing when he described some of the extreme anti-America sentiments that are out there, but aslo comforting in that, as an idividual, my feelings were also shared with many people from different cultures and backgrouds. The main message about this book is that we are not alone-- and "we" means everyone in the world, not just Americans in the aftermath of Sept. 11. Everyone's actions have consequences and its time to learn more about each other.
Rating:
Summary: Pure Genius
Review: This is a work of pure genius that will help you understand what is going on in the Middle East, why Osama and crew attacked the US, and what problems still need to be resolved. It raises the complexity of this war, and presents the difficult but neccesary solutions. You will scratch your head saying, "I never thought of it that way!" Thomas Friedman understands what is going on in the world. He's been an international correspondant for the New York times many years. His first book, "From Beirut to Jersulam" was published over 10 years ago, and highlights the issues between the Isrealis and Palestinians. As a longtime correspondent in both Beirut and Jerusalem, he had a unique vantage point to the conflict. In "the Lexus and the Olive Tree" he explains the innevitability of globabilization and the value and danger of being plugged in to the global economic system. This insight is drawn into his latest work. The book is broken into three sections:
- Columns immediately preceding 9/11
- Columns immediately following 9/11
- Assorted travel notes post/11 (somewhat redundant with #2) Some of the key insights that were new to me:
1 - In the 60s, Korea had the same per-capita standard of living as the Middle East. Now it's eclipsed most of the middle east by 100%, largely as a result of modernization programs. Even Saudi Arabia has seen it's per capita income drop by more than 50%
2 - Much of the anti-American hatred in the Arab world is a result of a schooling system funded largely by Iranian and Saudi non-profits. This educational system needs to be replaced with a more modern one.
3 - We are dealing with a world in which the "Word on the street" in much of the Arab world believes 4,000 Jews received a warning not to go into work on 9/11. This is a war of educating the street as much as it is about guns.
4 - Iran a singificantly anti-American government. It is no coincidence that the "Word on the street" is very pro-American as a result.
5 - Israel offered the Palestinians 94% of the occupied territories in a peace deal, which Arafat refuted at Davos. This cost the Prime Minister his election and brought Sharon to power. All of these points above are worth pondering. They point to a world that is much more integrated and complex than meets the eye. They require solutions much deeper than bombs and money. In summary, the book is very important. Thomas Friedman delves into the minds and history of our enemies. He works to understand the problem more than "It's us against them, so stock up on the arms" It is an immensely valuable book for understanding the world around us, and what our country needs to do.
Rating:
Summary: All major Country Leaders should read this
Review: His New York Times columns play even better the second time. He is a true visionary. We would have less wars is World leaders payed attention
Rating: 
Summary: The Columnist of the Foreign Policy Establishment
Review: If a serious chasm occurs between popular opinion and the will of our foreign policy elites on, say, issues like unilateral US escalation of the war on Iraq or unfettered capitalistic globalization, you can practically count on Friedman, through an accessible writing style, occasional frankness and unassailable sincerity, to attempt to conciliate it in favor of those same policy elites, though by simultaneously explicating and legitimating the popular sentiment undergirding that opposition so policymakers can best exploit it. For example, the public apparantly opposes by a slight majority unilateral US military escalation against Iraq soley or primarily to depose its regime from power and, concurrently, it anticipates another terrorist atrocity to occur on US soil. Well, Mr. Friedman hears you on both counts. However, he Does buy into the legitimacy of a unilateral US invasion (He Has To logically since he says he favors replacing the Iraqi regime, and this In Spite Of the illegality thus far of such an agenda), but for a reason that justly resounds with we the public emotionally in our trepidations over more acts of terrorism at home (so listen up neoconservative and neoliberal war hawks in government or writing for the American Spectator or New Republic, as you seemingly have the past few weeks!): he wants to Deter future terrorist acts against the US by reshaping Iraq into a beacon for democracy in the autocratic Middle East (as though Morocco or Jordon couldn't fit that model). Thus, this is but one example (with neo-liberal globalisation exemplifying another as the author Thomas Frank has humorously documented in his book One Market Under God) of Mr. Friedman writing for an audience of policy elites so they might curry favor with a skeptical public on a very contentious issue.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book ( On foreign policy)
Review: well, I just finished reading another smart and fascinating book by Tom Friedman on foreign affairs. He does a fair an accurate job deceifering the event taking place in the Middle East. More than a few of the theories I had already heard yet it was interesting to recap. But, when he comments on political going-ons in America you see a hate for the administration and dashes of liberalism. Hey, if I wanted a liberal book I would have bought Micheal Moore's new one. Mr. Friedman your overseas analysis is objective, but stay away from domestic policy, your just too one sided.
Rating:
Summary: Close and Clear
Review: Tom Friedman has traveled and lived close to the action in the Arab world for years. He knows the subtle differences between the cultures and he understands the delicate balance of one with the other. These are critical skiils that are often missing inside our government, where we see tend to see the world through our filters rather than through the filters of the globe. Tom does that for us. Let's hope we're listening.
He's sooo clear. He writes crisply well. Reading seems easy and understanding immediate.
Rating:
Summary: Must Read
Review: This is a book that every American age 10-100 should b reading. It is clear, succint, concise, mind blowing, incredibly informative and objective, and when appropriate very funny. Tom Villars...I don't know where you're coming from with your review, but hey, this is America. You're entitled!
Rating:
Summary: Good columns, but skip if you've read them...
Review: Tom Friedman is one of the most astute observers of the middle East crisis working today. He is essential reading for anyone hoping make sense of the relationship between Islam and the West. That said, if you are a regular reader of Friedman's New York Times columns, you can skip this book - you've read it before. Yes, he includes his diary, which tells of his travels and contacts post 9/11. However the most interesting parts of these experiences made it into the columns! So there is really not much that is both new and worthwhile.
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