Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis

Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis by Jared Diamond      Audio Book:  18 hrs., 41 mins
Hard Back Book:  512 pages              Genre: Political History

I did not realize until after I had finished this book that it is actually the third in a trilogy, the first two books being, "Guns, Germs and Steel," and "Collapse."  It did not occur to me while listening to it on CD as it seemed like a stand alone book doing a comparative study on seven countries and the United States and seemed to have its own beginning and future speculations.   I may have to go back and pick up the other two as Jared Diamond is a fascinating historian and political analyst.   He gives the topics a lot more information because he actually lived in 5 of the 7 countries he discusses which are:  Japan, Indonesia, Germany, Austria, Finland (and a bit on Iceland), the then Soviet Union, and Chile, he is also fluent in the languages of the countries he spent significant time in.    He is one of those story tellers who peppers his own experiences politically, as a resident and as a foreigner which gives him insight into the cultures and the times in such a genuine way he literally takes you along with him as he describes the times he was there and what was happening.   Then he uses his knowledge and experiences to discuss ways that the other countries found solutions to or failed in finding workable answers to their ongoing problems.   He discusses way they fixed or tried to fix or totally ignored any type of change, the outcome and what could have been done differently and sites several possible outcomes of each of his conclusions.   He later discusses challenges that the United States faces and what measures are being taken, considered or ignored to change for the better.    He is a very savvy soul and I found his sharing of experiences and his take on what is going on what the fix or fixes could be world-wide, new issues to be faced profound and I hope he is being included in think tanks and symposiums around the world that will put his suggestions and ideas into feasible plans.    Good book.   Great listen.   I would highly recommend this book as it will illuminate a lot of historical facts that you won't have learned in school.   He is brutally honest in his observations and speaks the truth as he sees it and names names.   This book will definetly add a few new wrinkles to your brain from all that you will learn here.   Really reader friendly nothing lofty, very down to earth like reading top secret documents finally released to the public.   GOOD BOOK.