Flashpoints

The Emerging Crisis in Europe

By: George Friedman

Narrated by: Bruce Turk, George Friedman

A major new book by New York Times bestselling author and geopolitical forecaster George Friedman (The Next 100 Years), with a bold thesis about coming events in Europe. This provocative work examines “flashpoints,” unique geopolitical hot spots where tensions have erupted throughout history, and where conflict is due to emerge again.

“There is a temptation, when you are around George Friedman, to treat him like a Magic 8 Ball.” —The New York Times Magazine

With remarkable accuracy, George Friedman has forecasted coming trends in global politics, technology, population, and culture. In Flashpoints, Friedman focuses on Europe—the world’s cultural and power nexus for the past five hundred years . . . until now. Analyzing the most unstable, unexpected, and fascinating borderlands of Europe and Russia—and the fault lines that have existed for centuries and have been ground zero for multiple catastrophic wars—Friedman highlights, in an unprecedentedly personal way, the flashpoints that are smoldering once again.
The modern-day European Union was crafted in large part to minimize built-in geopolitical tensions that historically have torn it apart. As Friedman demonstrates, with a mix of rich history and cultural analysis, that design is failing. Flashpoints narrates a living history of Europe and explains, with great clarity, its most volatile regions: the turbulent and ever-shifting land dividing the West from Russia (a vast area that currently includes Ukraine, Belarus, and Lithuania); the ancient borderland between France and Germany; and the Mediterranean, which gave rise to Judaism and Christianity and became a center of Islamic life.
Through Friedman’s seamless narrative of townspeople and rivers and villages, a clear picture of regions and countries and history begins to emerge. Flashpoints is an engrossing analysis of modern-day Europe, its remarkable past, and the simmering fault lines that have awakened and will be pivotal in the near future. This is George Friedman’s most timely and, ultimately, riveting book.

Critic reviews

One of the Wall Street Journal's Top 16 Books on Wall Street’s Spring Break Reading List

"In this insightful examination of contemporary Europe, political scientist Friedman (Next Decade) challenges the view that the European Union and its neighbors have transcended the threat of violent conflict among nations….. By dispassionately anatomizing the fears, aspirations, and interests of the key players, particularly a resurgent and resentful Russia, Friedman vividly describes a region where memories are long, perceived vulnerabilities are everywhere, and major threats have emerged rapidly and unexpectedly many times before."
--Publishers Weekly

"This nonacademic but erudite view of European history shows that the 20th century's trauma of war and violence is not quite behind us….A thoughtful, uncluttered treatise considering Europe's intractable patterns of unemployment, immigration and racism."
--Kirkus

Another increadible book by George

More in-depth analysis. I do not know anyone that sees the world more clearly and can analyze the world more thoroughly than GF.

Great performance and great content

Garnered an understanding on the historical interconnectedness b/w nations surrounding Europe. Great performance.

Sophisticated, yet clear appraisal of the European situation

Among the best written and clearest assessments concerning the state of Europe that I’ve ever read (and I’ve read several).

Personal experience, a life of relevant work, and clarity of thought guide Mr Friedman’s work. He makes a compelling case for his view and personally, he’s convinced me of his worldview... with one caveat.

He makes the case that Europe hasn’t actually evolved away from its bloody past nor previous rivalries. History does show us that old habits do indeed die hard... but sometimes they do eventually die. How do we know Europe hasn’t fundamentally changed, as has happened centuries prior? He makes a clear case for the European periphery being in shambles but it’s not clear to me that the European core won’t step up. However, I do think he’s probably right - the core probably won’t step up - but there’s always hope.

A must read for those interested in European geopolitics/economics.

(Other reviewers have complained of the narration but I thought it was fine. On par for every other nonfiction book I’ve ever read)

Well Done

Excellent analysis of the European situation and its roots in history. It is well worth a listen.

A resume

Pretty good review of the history of Europe and U.S. role in rebuilding it after the war.