While Europe Slept by Bruce Bawer

While Europe Slept by Bruce Bawer

The struggle for the soul of Europe today is every bit as dire and consequential as it was in the 1930s. Then, in Weimar, Germany, the center did not hold, and the light of civilization nearly went out. Today, the continent has entered yet another Weimar moment. Will Europeans rise to the challenge posed by radical Islam, or will they cave in once again to the extremists?

As an American living in Europe since 1998, Bruce Bawer has seen this problem up close. Across the continent--in Amsterdam, Oslo, Copenhagen, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, and Stockholm--he encountered large, rapidly expanding Muslim enclaves in which women were oppressed and abused, homosexuals persecuted and killed, infidels threatened and vilified, Jews demonized and attacked, barbaric traditions (such as honor killing and forced marriage) widely practiced, and freedom of speech and religion firmly repudiated.

The European political and media establishment turned a blind eye to all this, selling out women, Jews, gays, and democratic principles generally--even criminalizing free speech--in order to pacify the radical Islamists and preserve the illusion of multicultural harmony. The few heroic figures who dared to criticize Muslim extremists and speak up for true liberal values were systematically slandered as fascist bigots. Witnessing the disgraceful reaction of Europe's elites to 9/11, to the terrorist attacks on Madrid, Beslan, and London, and to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Bawer concluded that Europe was heading inexorably down a path to cultural suicide.

Europe's Muslim communities are powder kegs, brimming with an alienation born of the immigrants' deep antagonism toward an infidel society that rejects them and compounded by misguided immigration policies that enforce their segregation and empower the extremists in their midst. The mounting crisis produced by these deeply perverse and irresponsible policies finally burst onto our television screens in October 2005, as Paris and other European cities erupted in flames.

WHILE EUROPE SLEPT is the story of one American's experience in Europe before and after 9/11, and of his many arguments with Europeans about the dangers of militant Islam and America's role in combating it. This brave and invaluable book--with its riveting combination of eye-opening reportage and blunt, incisive analysis--is essential reading for anyone concerned about the fate of Europe and what it portends for the United States.

While Europe Slept, by Bruce Bawer, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. He is also the author of several volumes of literary criticism, including Diminishing Fictions and The Aspect of Eternity, as well as A Seat at the Table and Stealing Jesus. He's contributed to the New York Times, Washington Post Book World, Wall Street Journal, New Republic, Wilson Quarterly, City Journal, and a variety of other publications. www.brucebawer.com is the author's website.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780385514729
ISBN 10	0385514727
Title	While Europe Slept
Author	Bruce Bawer
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Doubleday Books
Year published	2006-03-02
Number of pages	247
Prizes	Commended for National Book Critics Circle Award (Criticism) 2006
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.