Review by Choice Review
The negative impact of the Great Recession of 2008 still lingers for many smaller European countries, perhaps most painfully for Greece. The Greek struggles prompt an important economic debate: would Greece have been better--or worse--off had it not attempted austerity measures as a way to alleviate budget concerns? Economists debate this question as do other social scientists, as evidenced by a 2011 conference in Scotland on the topic. This book, ably edited by Karyotis (Univ. of Strathclyde. UK) and Gerodimos (Bournemouth Univ., UK), captures the conference presentations. Rather than simply examine austerity questions, however, several contributors discuss how framing the crisis led to specific policies and how stereotypes of northern and southern Europeans are repeated in analyses of the Greek situation. Another chapter compares Greek political practices to those of nearby Turkey, a country that recovered from the recession more quickly than its neighbor. Similar to Aaron Major's Architects of Austerity: International Finance and the Politics of Growth (CH, Sep'14, 52-0379) in its examination of political forces shaping the crisis, the book differs by examining not only political and economic concerns but also sociological and psychological ones in a time of extreme austerity. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. --Jay J. Janney, University of Dayton
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
