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gonzorama's review against another edition
1.0
This is one of those books *everybody* has read - and *everybody* seems to love. I hated it. It had a "golly, gee" tone to it that seemed 5 years too late. Maybe I'm missing something, but it just seemed like a retread of familiar information to me.
allibroad's review against another edition
As of page 81, Friedman has already used the phrase "more different" 10+ times.
Repetitive and surprisingly boring. I'll stick to his op-ed column.
Repetitive and surprisingly boring. I'll stick to his op-ed column.
tzurky's review against another edition
4.0
The author's enthusiasm is difficult to stomach at times, as is his insistence on beating the reader over the head with how great his terminology is.
On the plus side: the book is pretty comprehensive, if perhaps shallow, and the cases are interesting. For someone like me who was aware of the broad trends but not the details it was an interesting read and the timeline of events described is certainly compelling.
On the whole I must say I liked reading it. If taken with the requisite grain of salt and merely as a personal opinion piece instead of gospel it is certainly a good book.
On the plus side: the book is pretty comprehensive, if perhaps shallow, and the cases are interesting. For someone like me who was aware of the broad trends but not the details it was an interesting read and the timeline of events described is certainly compelling.
On the whole I must say I liked reading it. If taken with the requisite grain of salt and merely as a personal opinion piece instead of gospel it is certainly a good book.
crazy_mr_earl's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting, and still relevant in many ways, but dry writing in spots. There were some very interesting stories, but they were offset by these dry spells.
joestewart's review against another edition
3.0
Thomas Friedman is too wordy - on the other hand he offers some poignant observations, such as: So, you think you're 1 in a 1,000,000? Well, there are a 1,000 of you in China!
rinnyssance's review against another edition
Eh.
Already knew how this book would go when the first chapter quoted Christopher Columbus. Globalization is something I'm anti- about for more than commerce reasons. I actually think that's the upside. The downside has a lot to do with what I just explained. The guy quoted Christopher Columbus. You either get what I'm saying or you don't.
Already knew how this book would go when the first chapter quoted Christopher Columbus. Globalization is something I'm anti- about for more than commerce reasons. I actually think that's the upside. The downside has a lot to do with what I just explained. The guy quoted Christopher Columbus. You either get what I'm saying or you don't.
kellypigeon's review against another edition
1.0
If I had read this when it was published, it might have been 3 stars. Unfortunately, it hasn't aged well, unless you count unintended comedic effect. Even if the information was new, the structure is still tiresome.
jenmcmaynes's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting. I learned a lot about globalization, something I had not given a lot of thought to. I especially liked the '10 flatteners' he describes at the beginning. This is definitely a pro-business, pro-industry look at the world, and I didn't always agree with everything he said, but it did give me a lot to think about. I couldn't help thinking, though, that this book really showed its age (it was published in 2004) in three areas: 1) technology has changed so much in the last decade, that the 'high tech' examples given were no longer applicable, 2) Friedman comes awfully close to equating business prosperity with the average America's prosperity; given the public discourse on this the last few years, it felt almost like a time capsule, 3) towards the end, while discussing things that could "unflatten" the world, much of the discussion revolves around the Al-Qaeda. Which is probably 100% accurate, but again, sorta brought back that early 2000s hysteria and paranoia.
Despite showing its age a bit, there are still lessons to be learned in this book. Glad I read it.
Despite showing its age a bit, there are still lessons to be learned in this book. Glad I read it.
itsfallonshay's review against another edition
1.0
This book was so fucking boring!!! Like… Jesus Christ. I picked it up at random from the donation shelves outside Strand and I’m not making that mistake again for a long time. I was too stubborn to quit reading but it was a brutal undertaking.
Such false advertisement too… “a brief history of the twenty-first century” like NO queen! The author focuses on 6-10 of the most niche and trivial elements of the 21st century. Like dear god an entire 40 pages dedicated to the way Honeywell customer service call centers operate or about the procedural elements of the Walmart headquarters in Arkansas. Everything is focused on technological development and globalization, which are undoubtedly some of the most important progressions of the 21st century, but don’t constitute an entire generic history.
Part of my dislike of this book is also due to the fact that it was published in 2005 and essentially everything written is now outdated, but it is my own fault for failing to realize this before starting.
Not that anyone would buy this random ass book in 2023, but I don’t recommend.
Such false advertisement too… “a brief history of the twenty-first century” like NO queen! The author focuses on 6-10 of the most niche and trivial elements of the 21st century. Like dear god an entire 40 pages dedicated to the way Honeywell customer service call centers operate or about the procedural elements of the Walmart headquarters in Arkansas. Everything is focused on technological development and globalization, which are undoubtedly some of the most important progressions of the 21st century, but don’t constitute an entire generic history.
Part of my dislike of this book is also due to the fact that it was published in 2005 and essentially everything written is now outdated, but it is my own fault for failing to realize this before starting.
Not that anyone would buy this random ass book in 2023, but I don’t recommend.
mikebarbre's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
5.0