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EuroTragedy Summary

EuroTragedy: A Drama in Nine Acts by Ashoka Mody (Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor in International Economy Policy, Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor in International Economy Policy, Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University; Former Deputy Director of the Research and European Departments, International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC)

The promise of the European pursuit of ever closer union created tremendous optimism that conflict was the past and harmony would be the future. The enthusiasm for economic integration and monetary union, through the Euro, enhanced the confidence that differences among countries could be overcome. In this dynamic and incisive overview of the European project from its beginnings, Ashoka Mody convincingly demonstrates that the tensions and flaws of the European project were both baked-in and foreseen from the beginning. He focuses on personalities whose ambitious and relentless push for integration led them to choose facts and analysis consistent with their visions and to dismiss warnings of turbulence. They thus laid the seeds for disappointment. Mody examines key moments when contradictions were papered-over, compromising the integrity of integration. And throughout he shows how political and economic leaders believed the stories they told themselves about the inevitability of a united Europe as a foundation of peace, prosperity, and democratic ideals, even in the face of warnings from the earliest stages that while the political pillars seemed strong, the economic foundations were weak. Mody compellingly shows how monetary union impaired European integration rather than enhancing it. European countries have always has vastly different economic conditions, and the common currency increased divergences rather than smoothing them, as many analysts warned at the time. The economic, financial, and political pathologies of the euro were there from the beginning, even if the global economic boom hid them. With political and economic elites benefitting, they could ignore the growing the discontent of those who suffered and the growing antipathy to the European project in national heartlands. When crisis inevitably hit, leaders denied, delayed, and took half-measures that only further alienated people. And if once the inability to deliver on the economic promise caused the political handicaps to worsen, now the political splintering is making it harder to mount an economic response.

EuroTragedy Reviews

This monumental study...pulls no punches...Advanced students, their tutors, commentators and policy-makers must absorb this very timely book. * Derek Hawes, University of Bristol *
It is currently one of the leading works on the subject and one of the few that conveys some of the passion and urgency surrounding the issue. * Mathew Partridge *
The aptlytitled, clear written, and highly informative EuroTragedy: A Drama in Nine Acts by Ashoka Mody illuminates the euro's flawed origins, the counter productive way that Europe's political and eoncomic leaders have managed it, and its dismal prospects for the future. * Michael Mandelbaum *
Brilliant and biting. Ashoka Mody tells the story elegantly...he has a fine eye for the telling quote. * Philip Turner *
Tour de force. Coldblooded economic analysis with a passionate critique. * Ferdi De Ville *
Mody's book is one of the most coherent histories of the euro. * Hans Kundanini *
Best history of the eurozone crisis...admirable detail. * Andrew Moravcsik *
It is currently one of the leading works on the subject and one of the few that conveys some of the passion and urgency surrounding the issue. * Mathew Partridge *
Mody (Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton Univ.) has written a page-turning work that combines deep political and economic analysis with fluent prose... This book provides an excellent historical thread for understanding the current crisis in the EU, and specifically in the eurozone....Summing Up: Highly Recommended. * CHOICE *
A comprehensive and authoritative history of the euro which argues that the project was a predictable error. * Books of the Year 2018, The Economist *
Comprehensive and fastidiously researched... One of the many strengths of Mody's book is its detailed historical narrative of how the tragedy unfolded... Whether or not one agrees with Mody's policy prescription for an ultimate happy ending, this is a supremely authoritative telling of the sad tale. * Independent *
The sweeping chronology of the euro is well told... he has such a good eye for what is economically important that his observations trump much of the conventional analysis he echoes... The most original parts of his book are the reasoned explanations of why debt restructuring of both sovereigns and banks should have been embraced early in the crisis and should be made a regular tool in future crises. Another highlight is his debunking of the 'Deauville myth'... If only this lesson is taken away, the book will have rendered a public service. * Financial Times *
Mody's tome (and it is a real door-stopper) comes from a uniquely valuable perspective [EuroTragedy] is the most detailed account yet of how the EU got things so badly wrong, and why. * The Sunday Times Ireland *
Combining both narrative history and detailed charts and tables, Mody's book will appeal to scholarly readers, while still being straightforward enough to be enjoyed by the intelligent layperson... it is currently one of the leading works on the subject and one of the few that conveys some of the passion and urgency surrounding the issue. * Dr. Matthew Partridge, MoneyWeek *
EuroTragedy: A Drama in Nine Acts presents the gloomy case particularly well. * Edward Hadas, ZAWYA *
The many errors in official Europe's attempts to deal with the euro-area crisis are richly documented in Ashoka Mody's new book, EuroTragedy. His thoroughly researched story is lively and full of detail, especially highlighting unwise and incoherent policy statements made by politicians and others in countries on both sides of the great euro-area divide between creditor and debtor. There is indeed much to criticize, and the economist has skillfully woven together many of the diverse strands of the euro-area crisis, as well as the fateful decisions taken during the years of its planning and construction. * The Irish Times *
In this book, the best history of the recent eurozone crisis yet to appear, Mody argues that the euro is dysfunctional because it defies the principles of economics... Mody recounts this history in admirable detail. * Foreign Affairs *
[C]onvincing, readable, and satisfactorily acid. * National Review *
If you want to really, really understand how the Eurozone came to be and how it went awry, this is the book for you. * Medium *
A page-turning work that combines deep political and economic analysis with fluent prose ... This book provides an excellent historical thread for understanding the current crisis in the EU, and specifically in the eurozone. * M Clua Losada, Choice *
Mody's book is one of the most coherent histories of the euro, starting at its origins in the minds of European leaders like Georges Pompidou and ending with the crisis that began in 2010. But perhaps the most important contribution Mody makes is his critique of the 'pro-European' ideology that was used to justify the euro's creation. * Hans Kundnani, Chatham House, UK *
Ashoka Mody has written a magnificent book on the euro, a story that he rightly describes as a tragedy. As he documents, from the very start there were Cassandras predicting a disaster to come, and at every step of the way, they were dismissed by European leaders, hiding behind political slogans and indulging in shoddy economic thinking. As I read this powerful book, I was reminded of Winston Churchill's famous remark as he reflected on the string of disastrous military decisions that led to the First World War: The terrible ifs accumulate.' * Liaquat Ahamed, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Lords of Finance *
A magisterial overview of Europe's remarkable single currency experiment. Written in a style accessible to a wide readership, it is a must-read for researchers and policymakers. This brilliant new book would also be perfect as a main text for a university course on the euro and European integration. * Kenneth Rogoff, Harvard University; co-author of This Time is Different *
One does not have to share Ashoka Mody's view that the German government should admit guilt for the Euro crisis to recognize that this book is fascinating reading, full of insight into the history of the euro and its ultimate failure. Written by a leading scholar and former senior IMF official, there is much to be learnt from this extremely well-written and important work. We need books like this to enter a frank and open debate. * Hans-Werner Sinn, author of The Euro Trap *
Mody develops a dramatic historical narrative of how European leaders brushed aside the warnings of many economists and went ahead with the euro, not knowing where this would lead them. Instead of creating unity, the euro has contributed to Euroscepticism and intensified division in Europe. Mody identifies the reason: the Eurozone is an incomplete monetary union that leads to divergence and instability. This contrarian' book will not be popular in Brussels, but all the more so elsewhere. * Paul De Grauwe, John Paulson Chair in European Political Economy, London School of Economics *

About Ashoka Mody (Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor in International Economy Policy, Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor in International Economy Policy, Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University; Former Deputy Director of the Research and European Departments, International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC)

Ashoka Mody is Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor in International Economic Policy at the Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University. Previously, he was Deputy Director in the International Monetary Fund's Research and European Departments. He has also worked at the World Bank, University of Pennsylvania, and AT&T's Bell Laboratories. Mody has advised governments worldwide on developmental and financial projects and policies, while writing extensively for policy and scholarly audiences.

Table of Contents

List of Figures Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations Introduction: Europe Ends Up Someplace Else Chapter 1: Three Leaps in the Dark, 1950-1982 Chapter 2: Kohl's Euro, 1982-1998 Chapter 3: Schroeder Asserts the German National Interest, 1999-2003 Chapter 4: Irrational Exuberance, 2004-2007 Chapter 5: After the Bust, the Denial, 2007-2009 Chapter 6: Delays and Half-Measures: Greece and Ireland, 2010 Chapter 7: Policy Wounds Leave Behind Scar Tissue, 2011-2013 Chapter 8: The ECB Hesitates, the Italian Fault Line Deepens, 2014-2017 Chapter 9: The Final Act: A Declining and Divided Europe Scenarios: The Future Ain't What It Used to Be Epilogue Main Characters in the Euro Drama Timeline of Key Events: How it Unfolded Notes References Index

Additional information

GOR010083896
9780199351381
0199351384
EuroTragedy: A Drama in Nine Acts by Ashoka Mody (Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor in International Economy Policy, Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor in International Economy Policy, Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University; Former Deputy Director of the Research and European Departments, International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC)
Used - Very Good
Hardback
Oxford University Press Inc
2018-06-15
672
Winner of 2019 Prose Award Winner in the Economics Category, American Association of Book Publishers Foreign Affairs Best Books 2018 Economist's Books of the Year Corriere della Sera Best Books of 2018 Martin Wolf's Summer Books of 2018.
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
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Customer Reviews - EuroTragedy