Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics Hardcover – 9 July 2015

Tim Marshall’s breathtaking, worldwide, all encompassing examination of the development of nations and his bold predictions are ambitious and stimulating and controversial. He maintains that while geography does not dictate the course of all events and that ethnic composition, physical resources, great ideas and great leaders are part of the push and pull of history, they must all operate within the confines of geography.Geographical location provides the reason that if you were looking for a country to live in, the first one the estate agent would show you is the USA. Due to geography, 50 American states add up to one nation in the way the 28 sovereign states of Europe never can. Its geographical position makes it invulnerable to conventional attack. Its east coast is packed with natural harbours and fertile soil. The greater Mississipi basin has more navigable rivers than the rest of the world put together. And it is rich in natural resources. Tim Marshall builds a picture of how this geographical strength has allowed theUSA to build its economic strength and through the Marshall Plan and NATO its superpower status. He maintains only three places challenge American hegemony: a united Europe, Russia and China. All would grow stronger, but two would reach their limits. Only China would keep rising.Tim Marshall contends that China will become agile over the next decade. It is not weighed down by human rights. It is secure in its borders. He sits on the fence for once with his predictions. There are 1.4 billion reasons why China may surpass the USA as the greatest power in the world and 1.4 billion reasons why a great depression like the 1930’s and mass unemployment could result in social unrest on a scale hitherto unseen.Probably Russia exemplifies more than any other country the importance of geography, and the natural resources that geography endows to a country, in gaining political power. In the 15 years since 1989, every single Warsaw pact state bar Russia has joined NATO or the European Union. With no warm water port and the threat of Ukraine joining NATO, in 2014 Russia annexed Crimea for its port of Svestapol. The EU imposed limited sanctions – limited by the fact that European countries are dependent upon Russia for energy. Latvia, Slovakia, Finland and Estonia are 100% dependent upon Moscow for natural gas. The Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Lithuania 80%, Greece , Austria and Hungary 60% and Germany for half of its supply. But the USA is building liquefied natural gas terminals to export their cheap shale gas to Poland and Lithuania. This is an economic battle based upon geography and one of the modern examples of where technology is being used to beat the geographic restraints of earlier eras.It is with the Middle East and India, Pakistan and Afghanistan where Tim Marshall gets most critical of the role of western powers in creating epic conflict in their ignorant geographical division of their colonial empires.Division of the Middle East along Sykes-Picot arbitrary geographical lines with no respect for ethnicity or religion, is key in explaining the violence and extremism of today. Prior to Sykes–Picot there were no states of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Saudia Arabia, Kuwait, Israel or Palestine. Islam is the predominant religion but the Middlee East contains many different versions. From this springs doctrinal disputes and warfare. Sunni Islam has various branches including the strict Hanbali tradition favoured by many Sunnis from Saudi Arabia and Qatar. This in turn influences ultra-purist Salafi thought which predominates among jihadists. Shia Islam has three main divisions with some such as the Aawites, of President Assad in Syria, and the Druze, in Lebanon, being so far away from traditional Islamic thought that many other Muslims, especially the Sunni, do not even recognise them as being part of the religion. The legacy of European colonialism left the Arabs grouped into nation states with various versions of Islam and ruled by leaders who tended to favour whichever branch of Islam they themselves came from. These dictators then used the machinery of state to ensure their writ over the entire area within the artificial lines drawn by Europeans. Tim Marshall looks in some detail at each country but concludes that Sykes-Picot is breaking and putting it back together in a different shape will be a long and bloody affair.Similarly the division of India and Pakistan, two countries tied together within the geography of the Indian subcontinent, caused major problems given that they share a 1,900 mile border and the one thing they both agree on is that neither wants the other around. Each of them bristles with antagonism and nuclear weapons, so how they manage this unwanted relationship is a matter of life and death to tens of millions.In Pakistan and Afghanistan the main ethnic groups do not fit the broader imposed in 1893 by the Durand Line. The Pakistani Taliban is a natural outgrowth of the Afghan version. Both are predominantly Pashtun and neither accepts domination by any non-Pashtun power, be it the British army of the nineteenth century or the Punjabi –dominated Pakistani army of the 21st century. With the USA’s campaign against the Taliban likely to wain, the pressure on Pakistan will relent.Other dire predictions in the book relate to potential water wars between Egypt and Ethiopia for the water of the Nile and between Turkey, where the Murat River rises before feeding into the Euphrates, and Iraq and Syria. And his concern over the mass movements of people if flooding of Bangladesh becomes worse due to climate change.This book is nothing if not monumental in its scope and thought provoking in its detail.

I purchased Kindle addition for some additional reading over the summer prior to University. This exceptionally well written piece is clear and concise and left me feeling more confident with global politics and current affairs. This book is perfect for beginners with little knowledge of global history, economy and politics.

Review: Tim Marshall's Prisoners of GeographyI was fortunate to be enrolled into the SocialBookCo reviewer program and was sent Tim Marshall’s Prisoners of Geography to review.Growing up I was always a devout reader. I loved books, loved collecting books, loved locking myself in my room and allowing my mind to enter new worlds, understand new concepts and live in the life of the characters of my book. Reading is what helped me get through most of my rocky childhood. I usually stuck to science fiction such as Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Divergent etc. Anything with action, adventure and a bit of suspense.When I received Prisoners of Geography I was super excited as I didn’t really know a thing about geopolitics. Tim Marshall did not disappoint. The book begins with a super power that every person on this planet has heard of before, a place where power and principles stand true today as they have in the past, Russia.My opinion of Russia and the culture and territory have changed in my 20s I must say the book has made me think extra hard of the plight Russia now faces. With its barren land, decline in population growth and restrictions from the other super powers of the world, the book made me feel a bit of concern and sincerity for Russia. By reading Prisoners of Geography, it sparked an interest to learn more and to research into what Tim Marshall describes as “six million square miles vast, eleven time zones vast; it is the largest country in the world”. Marshall begins each chapter by outlining the geographical barriers that influence the politics of the continent, the demographics and culture. He begins with the major bodies of water that help with foreign trade and go on to talk about deserts, mountains, plains, etc. Anything that affects the relationships of the country and its neighbors. He begins with Russia, which in my opinion was brilliant as Russia is so vast yet people such as myself from North America know very little. We know what history books have taught us and we know of the European countries as travel destinations but we don’t necessarily pay attention to the geopolitics of the countries and how it affects the country in which we live and their relationships. When we ask why it’s so hard to get visa’s, why oil prices fluctuate, why it’s cheaper to go to some places and not to others or why people are migrating it has to do in some sense with geopolitics and political ties that countries have made in the past. Marshall goes on to outline these very barriers and political outcomes for places such as China, United States of America, Western Europe and many others.The chapter that really peaked an interest, not that all of them didn't as each were enlightening in their own way but the chapter on Africa. Africa is a place in constant need yet sometimes we are not enlightened to why it has become the place we know today. Tim Marshall outlines the geographical barriers that Africa faces, the fight against diseases, the lack of medical information and supplies, the malnutrition and plight of about 75 million people and the ever existing internal wars that happen daily. Reading Prisoners of Geography has opened my eyes to each people's plights and fears and has provided me with an understanding of how much geography plays in the politics, cultures, immigration and safety of our planet.I did not expect much from Prisoners of Geography but I must say it has sparked a hunger for more information regarding geopolitics and has enticed me to research and learn more. That is what a great book does for its reader. It encompasses learning, the love for reading and affects the reader's’ feeling in some way.I appreciate SocialBookCo for sending me this book to review as I probably would have gone into a bookstore or seen this book on Amazon and not taken the chance on it. I am so glad I did through Social Books as now I am on a journey for more information, intrigued at the politics that will shape the world for our children and their children. I should’ve paid closer attention to geography class in high school, never knew it could be so interesting.I would highly recommend this book to anyone, you do not have to love geography or politics, but have the love for reading. This is definitely a great read and will spark an interest in history and political chess in which there is no definitive lines of the chessboard but instead mountains, bodies of water, deserts and forests.Loved this book.

So it is great book if you want overview of main regions of the world.However, if you are into global history, economy and politics you might know 90% of what is there already.Due to number of pages it was impossible to cover much detail of each region.Saying it is "mile wide but inch deep" might be a bit unfair but true for some readers.

The media could not be loaded. So informative and great perspectives for anyone who is interested in how world history has shaped over years! Highly recommend

Uma leitura muito interessante, ainda mais levando em consideração os acontecimentos recentes. Essencial para estudantes e profissionais de diversas áreas, como geografia, cartografia, relações exteriores, história e até finanças.

Una muy inteligente síntesis de una disciplina que en la escuela raramente se enseña. La geopolítica/historiada debiera ser la materia de estudio mejor fusionada que requeriría de maestros como Tim Marshall para comprender a profundidad el arreglo del mundo en que vivimos, y cómo llegamos a esto que tenemos como planeta. Sin duda es una lectura obligada y una invitación de mayores estudios para los maestros de historia, política, geografía y para los políticos de corta visión, que no son pocos.

My purpose was to know more about the complexity of international relations from a geography perspective. And now I think I get the main underlines.

You must read this eminently readable volume. Easy writing, filled with data, tongue-in-cheek humor. The author's knowledge base must be huge since he is just giving up tidbits for easy comprehension. I am sure his other writings must be going wider and deeper. I am certainly going to his other books.I never imagined that Geography played out so strongly in politics. This book opened my eyes to the brutal realities of politics. Nothing in this world is uninfluenced by geography. Lovely reading.Do not cringe on the price. It is worth every penny.