A review by thebigemmt505
The Power of Geography by Tim Marshall

funny informative reflective medium-paced

3.75

Now, strangely, I picked this one up before its predecessor; on my own admission this is sort of an accident, as I’d realized I put a hold on the wrong book too late. I decided to read The Power of Geography anyways, and given the many reviews saying Prisoners of Geography is better, I’ll definitely be picking that one up! 

The Power of Geography is a fascinating and well-written dive into various countries’ geopolitical advantages and disadvantages, then the resulting history. It’s dense without being inaccessible, it’s detailed without being too complex, and it’s intelligent without being snobbish. The chapters are structured well and each point is explored thoroughly. It leans much more into history than strictly into geography, which doesn’t necessarily impact the quality of writing, but was unexpected. That being said, the geography aspects were super interesting! 

The pacing varied by chapter, and while it was mostly decent, some chapters dragged on and felt repetitive. I would’ve liked to see more explanation as to why each country was specifically chosen, too. Perhaps to someone familiar with geography studies, or those who read the first book, would have found it redundant, but I still think if the book wants to be more stand-alone those explanations would’ve assisted. I asked myself many times “why specifically this country?” in relation to the overall theme of the book. In addition, some of the history felt highly rushed. Just from my minimal context of some the countries’ histories, I noticed huge gaps that felt relevant to at least mention. What was explained and left out was sometimes arbitrary. 

Overall though, the book is great! It’s definitely made me want to read more about geography, geopolitics, and history. Give it a read!