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ekholm's review against another edition
4.0
Even more topical now in 2018 than at the time of its first publication, Ignatieff's account of nationalism and its complex components come to life through the author's highlighting of local examples. Arguments are eloquently made using the lived experiences of people whose lives have been affected by nationalism, from Croatia, Quebec, Kurdistan etc. Although Blood and Belonging is a work of journalism rather than an academic thesis, the discussion would have been strengthened had the theories and scholarly contributions sparsely mentioned been more properly referenced.
riaana's review against another edition
4.0
The book explores the idea of nationalism and nationhood, which should not be assumed synonymous with statehood. I picked it up because a. my interest in Michael Ignatieff, the man who would be Prime Minister if not for his inability to out-maneuvered anyone politically (*sigh*), and b. there was a chapter about Quebec and I hoped it would allow me to better answer people's question of "What's the deal with Quebec, anyway?" here in the US.
The introductory chapter was largely expository, but the following chapters on individual regions (incl. Yugoslavia, Kurdistan, Ukraine) were, thankfully, in more of his journalistic style. He still used a few too many -isms for my taste, though. (Clientism? Really?) It was challenging for me to recall the state of the world as it was when this was written (1995), so I give him the benefit of the doubt for his various forecasts of trouble ahead.
Bottom line: I thought it was a very interesting read, and gave me a lot to think about. If you're interested, you could probably just watch his BBC series upon which the book was based.
The introductory chapter was largely expository, but the following chapters on individual regions (incl. Yugoslavia, Kurdistan, Ukraine) were, thankfully, in more of his journalistic style. He still used a few too many -isms for my taste, though. (Clientism? Really?) It was challenging for me to recall the state of the world as it was when this was written (1995), so I give him the benefit of the doubt for his various forecasts of trouble ahead.
Bottom line: I thought it was a very interesting read, and gave me a lot to think about. If you're interested, you could probably just watch his BBC series upon which the book was based.
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