Fascism

A Warning

By: Madeleine Albright

Narrated by: Madeleine Albright

Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's Summary

From one of the most admired international leaders comes a timely, considered, and personal look at the history and current resurgence of fascism today and the virulent threat it poses to international freedom, prosperity, and peace. 

At the end of the 1980s, when the Cold War ended, many, including former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, believed that democracy had triumphed politically once and for all. Yet nearly 30 years later, the direction of history no longer seems certain. A repressive and destructive force has begun to reemerge on the global stage - sweeping across Europe, parts of Asia, and the United States - that to Albright, looks very much like fascism. 

Based on her personal experience growing up in Hungary under Hitler and the Communist regime that followed World War II, as well as knowledge gleaned from her distinguished diplomatic career and insights from colleagues around the globe, Albright paints a clear picture of how fascism flourishes and explains why it is once again taking hold worldwide, identifying the factors contributing to its rise. Most importantly, she makes clear what could happen if we fail to act against rising fascist forces today and in the near future, including the potential for economic catastrophe, a lasting spike in terrorist activity, increased sectarian violence, a rash of large-scale humanitarian emergencies, massive human rights violations, a breakdown in multilateral cooperation, and nearly irreparable self-inflicted damage to America's reputation and capacity to lead. 

Albright also offers clear solutions, including adjusting to the ubiquity of social media and the changing nature of the workplace and understanding ordinary citizens' universal desire for sources of constancy and morality in their lives. She contends that we must stimulate economic growth and narrow the gap between the rich and poor, urban and rural, women and men, and skilled and unskilled; work across borders to respond to transnational challenges; and ultimately recognize that democracy's unique virtue is its ability - through reason and open debate - to find remedies for its own shortcomings. 

©2018 Madeleine Albright (P)2018 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic Reviews

"Known for her frank manner and direct approach, Albright brings these traits to her performance. Both qualities make her a strong narrator for this serious work.... Her experiences as a diplomat serve her well as a narrator - she is confident, steady, and engaging." (AudioFile)

Warning!

Great history lesson, I felt like I was sitting in one of Madame Secretary’s classes. It is a book to listen to more than once and one that will provoke thought and conversation. No one else could have narrated it as well as she did.
Loved the book, love Madame Secretary, appreciate the lesson and warning.

A must read for everyone

If you have only time to read/listen one book this year, make sure it’s this one. Madeline Albright has outdone herself with this comprehensive overview of how democracies can digress to a state of peril. It is never with a Big Bang, but very subtle. This book helps you get some perspective on how fascism rises and a glimpse of what we can do about it. I personally love the quote by dr. Albright: ‘I’m an optimist, but I worry a lot’.
Very, very well recommended.

Excellent

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Listening to Albright narrate her book was like visiting with her over a cup of tea. She described her families fleeing the Nazis and later the Soviets. Her personal story of her encounter with fascism made the book more relevant than just an academic textbook would have been.

The book is well written and researched. I learned a lot from the book. To me it seemed Albright had trouble fitting in some of the current leaders as true fascists and was attempting to modernize the definition of a fascist. She did say that Kim of North Korea was the only true fascist regime currently in power today. Albright did show a step by step method on how a dictator seized power after being elected in a democracy. Albright stated that “Trump is the first anti-democratic president in modern U.S. history”. The book is worth reading and she stated that democracy depends on an educated, involved and voting public as well as both parties working together. She stated without these two things our country’s democracy will not survive.

The book is almost ten hours. Madeline Albright does a good job narrating the book.

Amazing Analysis

It was amazing to see the similarities of the despots throughout history. It's scary to realize how easily lead unthinking people are. The desire to fulfill selfish interests causes people to sell themselves into bondage, over and over.

Bad title, good book

First - This book is not about Fascism. It is about authoritarian governments and dictatorships that might turn fascist or did. The title is misleading.

Second - Madeleine Albright is NOT a professional narrator. I did not have a problem with that though. She is a university professor, and it was much like sitting in a class she is teaching. I loved this aspect. Would I hire her to read any other book - NO! But her own works, sure.

Third - She does get up on her high horse when she is giving opinion. Again, not a serious problem, as she has the background and knowledge to make judgement.

Finally - this is a wonderfully interesting book. I loved the history, and I think that was very even handed. She doesn't like Trump, but she does not consider him a Fascist. She is clear about this. There is a bit of Trump bashing, but again, this is where she is giving opinion from an educated place. She is an interesting lecturer (this is what it felt like listening to the book) and I will take a deeper look into some of the countries she mentioned that did not immediately come to mind when I think Fascism. I do wish she had not picked such an alarmist title. "Authoritarianism, Dictatorships, and Fascism: A Warning" would have been much more telling of what to expect in this book

A Book filled with information

Madeline Albright is 80 years old and brilliant. There are not many in this universe who are as knowledgeable as she regarding many countries. She conveys more knowledge in a few sentences than our so called leaders even pretend to know about. I fear that because there is no ad nauseam discussion of the pee pee tapes, many people will sadly let this book slip by.

Not about Donald Trump. Ok, a little bit.

Fascism: A Warning by Madeleine Albright is primarily a historic analysis of fascism in the 20th century and how it has made a recent comeback in many different parts of the world. And yes, Albright does include a segment on Donald Trump. But the focus is not Trump, and Albright states very clearly that this is a book she had planned to write before the 2016 US Presidential cycle. But regardless of what you think of Trump, Albright provides a very thoughtful, detailed analysis of the characteristics of fascists, and how they compare to populists, nationalists, authoritarian dictators, etc. Most of us, and certainly those on the popular television news channels, like to throw these terms around freely, without necessarily understanding what they mean. And while many of the historic figures she discusses were indeed authoritarian dictators, many were in fact democratically elected (at least at the beginning). This is very important to be aware of and understand, because it is the slippage of democratic values / attacks on democratic institutions which are the most dangerous. Very few leaders come into power saying they are going to curtail or eliminate free speech, freedom of religion, the basic inalienable rights (eg, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness). It happens over time. While most know that Albright is a Democrat and served as Secretary of State under Bill Clinton (the first woman to do so), not many know of her first hand experience with fascism during her childhood in Czechoslovakia and that she lost many family members during the holocaust. I have friends on the right who do not have the greatest opinion of Albright as a statesperson, but her experience, knowledge, wisdom and effort have resulted in a book worth reading.

Let your voice be heard

As a 70 year old woman with a moderate knowledge of history, I have found this book to be enlightening and disturbing. I felt that Ms Albright presented an even handed perspective of then and now events and the players leading these events. I am disturbed that so many countries seem to have autocratic leaders and particularly that the members of the leading party in our Congress appear to have their heads in the wrong part of anatomy. I can only hope that other readers will write to members of Congress and the media to raise the alarm.

A Must Read

Albright tells a gripping story of fascism in its many forms throughout the last century. It is a pointed and insightful exploration of how fascism can creep into a country and undermine democratic principles. Thank you madam Secretary!

A fascinating opinion

This was a fascinating opinion on what fascism was, is, and can be. It is a warning to all, of what it it looks like, but more importantly what we as people should be aware of in our daily lives. I have studied fascism and nationalism a lot, and I found it to be on-the-nose for the topic. I would highly recommend this to all political persuasions.