War, Work, and Want

Randall Hansen has written a panoramic and passionate book that casts global political and economic history after 1973 in a new light. Alongside a deft and richly informed argument about the destabilizing consequences of wars and shifts in government policies as well as recurrent hostility toward immigrant newcomers, he never loses sight of the impact on successive generations who labored for low wages in the globalized economy. His book has the hallmarks of a classic. * Peter Gatrell, University Of Manchester, And Author Of The Unsettling Of Europe: How Migration Reshaped A Continent * The depth of my disagreement with Hansen's conclusions about immigration is matched only by my admiration for his intellectual curiosity and the rigor of his historical scholarship. This book is a page turner. * David Goodhart, Author Of Head Hand Heart: The Struggle For Dignity And Status In The 21st Century * In this magnificent book, Randall Hansen shows how one event, the 1973 oil crisis, has changed the world. In the West, it sent capitalism into a low-wage spiral that made life cheaper for the middle classes, but on the backs of exploited migrant workers at home and abroad. In the Middle East, the sudden oil riches produced war, instability, and refugees far beyond the region, with no end in sight. The fact that history of events is explained by other events has never been more powerfully demonstrated. * Christian Joppke, University Of Bern, And Author Of Neoliberal Nationalism: Immigration And The Rise Of The Populist Right *