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zabeth1021's review against another edition
5.0
An immediately engrossing book delving into the history of America in a way that has been glossed over, forgotten or purposefully left out. Amazingly researched and presented!
patrickwalsh's review against another edition
5.0
Incredibly eye opening for someone living in the imperial core.
Millions of people have lived under U.S. occupation with little to no say in their government. U.S. citizens are never taught this and we only see our country as the 50 states.
Millions of people have lived under U.S. occupation with little to no say in their government. U.S. citizens are never taught this and we only see our country as the 50 states.
nicolehayes's review against another edition
5.0
I have a graduate degree in American history and I think it's fair to say that this book has fundamentally altered my view of the subject. Remarkable.
buddhagem's review against another edition
3.0
The title of this book is seriously misleading. It's like a very watered down William Blum or Noam Chomsky wrote a book that tangentially touches on Empire but never really digs down into the statecraft of hiding that empire, despite the lovely title. How do you hide an empire? The author really never digs into that question, and it leads to a rather unfulfilling book. A more accurate title for this book should be, "How do you shrink an Empire," because that's essentially what is discussed here. As the author refers to it as a "pointillist Empire" rather than the traditional Empires of old.
There's plenty I did not like about this book. It's filled with the typical liberal slant that sees collaborators as "level headed" realists; while shitting on the more radical revolutionaries like Pedro Albizu Campos. I'd strongly suggest Vijay Prashad's "The Darker Nations" for a much better look at these revolutionary heroes: [b:The Darker Nations: A People's History of the Third World|17609|The Darker Nations A People's History of the Third World|Vijay Prashad|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388249280l/17609._SX50_.jpg|19163]
The superficial history aside, Daniel Immerwahr never tackles the central question: How do you build the world's largest Empire while convincing the world that it doesn't exist? Clearly the victims of that Empire are not fooled, which gives us things like the attacks on the United States during September 11 while most the citizens of the United States were completely unaware of the causes of that attack.
Nevertheless, there is some interesting information here. Of particular interest I enjoyed the way the author delves into the nuanced legal status of people who live in our various colonies. It's in these instances that I felt the author was getting close to touching on the central question of this book but he never takes that next step. After all, what is the point of all this legal nuance between statutory citizens and nationals etc?
You could read worse books. I think my rating would more accurately be 2.5 stars but I rounded up.
There's plenty I did not like about this book. It's filled with the typical liberal slant that sees collaborators as "level headed" realists; while shitting on the more radical revolutionaries like Pedro Albizu Campos. I'd strongly suggest Vijay Prashad's "The Darker Nations" for a much better look at these revolutionary heroes: [b:The Darker Nations: A People's History of the Third World|17609|The Darker Nations A People's History of the Third World|Vijay Prashad|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388249280l/17609._SX50_.jpg|19163]
The superficial history aside, Daniel Immerwahr never tackles the central question: How do you build the world's largest Empire while convincing the world that it doesn't exist? Clearly the victims of that Empire are not fooled, which gives us things like the attacks on the United States during September 11 while most the citizens of the United States were completely unaware of the causes of that attack.
Nevertheless, there is some interesting information here. Of particular interest I enjoyed the way the author delves into the nuanced legal status of people who live in our various colonies. It's in these instances that I felt the author was getting close to touching on the central question of this book but he never takes that next step. After all, what is the point of all this legal nuance between statutory citizens and nationals etc?
You could read worse books. I think my rating would more accurately be 2.5 stars but I rounded up.
hffrkmp's review against another edition
4.0
I received How to Hide an Empire as part of a giveaway program. In a nutshell, the author has gone above and beyond to show that the United States is more than the 50 states. The book covers history behind why presidents started acquiring land and why they keep it. With the advent of beginning with radio, satellites, and GPS land has meant less as a way of accruing population but more in housing military installations.
alexanderyoungkim's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
samdradee's review against another edition
4.0
this is a good book that starts out great and finishes well, despite a few stumbles near the end. the first half is driving, pulling you page after page and chapter after chapter. the driving narrative is engaging and new historical facts are being added like bricks to the argument that is taking shape. but then in the back half it just… petered out. there are whole chapters that feel like they only serve to increase the word count, adding interesting context but not advancing the argument. it also put me off a bit how many times the author adds subjectivity to skew how you perceive the narrative. the facts of the story are shocking enough, you dont have to relay them in a heavy-handed way for them to have an impact. also how many times does one book need to set up an important figure without naming them so they can be introduced later in the same chapter by saying “and that young man’s name? osama bin laden” (im exaggerating but only barely). overall good, engaging, and informative, but be warned that some of the second half will make your eyes glaze over.
nkaters's review against another edition
4.0
An interesting examination of the Greater United States made up of guano islands, territories, and dependencies.
jadertots1's review
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.5
The engaging prose and fascinating history should be more than enough to satisfy general readers. For academic historians, this monograph offers a strong argument, thoughtful analysis, and a useful reframing of both and world history. My only gripe is that the audiobook doesn't include the author's footnotes! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will recommend it widely.