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America Alone: The End of the World as We Know It | 
 enlarge | Author: Mark Steyn
Publisher: Regnery Publishing, Inc.
Category: Book
List Price: $27.95
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Rating:  497 reviews
Sales Rank: 6559
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 214
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.2
ISBN: 0895260786
Dewey Decimal Number: 303.48273017670905
EAN: 9780895260789
ASIN: 0895260786
Publication Date: September 16, 2006
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Product Description
In this, his first major book, Mark Steyn--probably the most widely read, and wittiest, columnist in the English-speaking world--takes on the great poison of the twenty-first century: the anti-Americanism that fuels both Old Europe and radical Islam. America, Steyn argues, will have to stand alone. The world will be divided between America and the rest; and for our sake America had better win.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 492 more reviews...
 "Some light reading for the new Dark Ages" September 25, 2006
David McCune (Tacoma, WA)
980 out of 1051 found this review helpful
At least, that's how he signed my copy. I'd call Mark Steyn's essay the single best distillation of the challenge posed to the West by radical Islam that I have ever read.
Regular readers of Mr. Steyn will not be unfamiliar with his central points:
1) In the ongoing conflict between the West and Islam, both the demographics and the will to power favor the Islamists. That a country like Spain, with a birth rate of 1.15 children per adult women, will extinguish itself in a few generations, while immigrants from countries such as Pakistan (birth rate 4.53) will move in to fill the vacuum.
2) That as an aggressive, unassimilated minority edges closer to a majority (as in France, with an estimated 30% Muslim population in the under 20 age group), the character of the democratic institutions will become more closely aligned with Islamic law and culture.
3) That the post-Christian welfare state is largely to blame for the pessimism and failures of will demonstrated by Europe.
4) That America represents the primary exception to this trend, if only by degree, and that only a concerted effort to save our society stands a chance of reversing these trends.
That's a reasonable precis of Steyn's book, and he is certainly not unique in either his diagnosis or his prescription for the West. What sets this apart is his writing. The argument is made in a way that is the most engrossing and entertaining presentation of these ideas I've ever read. Steyn, as part of his superhuman writing regimen, is the obituarist for The Atlantic Monthly, and he puts that talent on display. This is not just a description of a set of demographic realities, but a loving, if premature (he hopes), obituary to a dying great culture. It's Steyn's ability to blend humor with the terminal diagnosis that sets him apart.
Take the following, from letting the book fall open at random (pages 60-61), where Steyn weaves together these seemingly disparate ideas: a photo of Lincoln with his future assassin in near proximity, the globalization at the root of a bird flu scare ("Any minute now there would be toxic cockatoos over the white cliffs of Dover, and the East End would be reeling under a blitzkrieg of sneezing parakeets"), the Black Death in Europe in the 1340s, the exportation of radical Islam from the Bedouin to the West, and finally a quote for Dean Martin's old nightclub act. I can't even describe it adequately; Steyn actually pulls it off, brilliantly.
Finally, I'd like to try to approach the book from the opposite direction. Invariably, political book reviews become contentious. It may be apparent that I came to this book predisposed to agree with the thesis, and I would not argue. That said, I think this is one of the rare political books that could be read and enjoyed regardless of personal politics. Dare I say it, but Steyn might even change some minds. Between his inventive turns of phrase, his references to pop culture and classic Americana, and his interesting digressions on topics as diverse as the heyday of French television and European history in the Middle Ages, Steyn offers something for everyone. And that's appropriate. Unlike many political books, this does not seem written to say "I'm right and you're wrong", but rather "we're all in this together".
Serious, Sober & Funny September 23, 2006
Steve Iaco (northern new jersey)
472 out of 543 found this review helpful
Mark Steyn is an astute observer of today's geopolitical scene, especially the rising tide of Muslim fundamentalism in Europe. This is a sober subject with ominous implications for the free world. Yet Steyn consistently leavens his commentaries with razor-sharp wit and trenchant one-liners.
On Russia's abominable 70% abortion rate: "Russian women are voting with their fetuses."
On opinion polls showing 49% of Egyptians believe the Mossad is responsible for a recent terrorist resort-hotel bombing: "Denial is more than a river in Egypt."
How about this anecdote (my favorite): In the fall of 2003, a mass panic swept Sudan. Foreigners were shaking hands with Sudanese men, causing them to lose their masculinity. One merchant reported that a west African entered his store and shook his hand powerfully until he felt his [male organ] melt into his body. "I know the feeling," Steyn writes. "The same thing happened to me when I shook hands with Senator Clinton."
Humor aside, Steyn raises serious questions about the West's willingness to confront virulent Muslim fundamentalism (on display once again with the reaction to Pope Benedict's recent comments) and capacity to prevail in the "long war."
Important and timely October 18, 2006
Dr. Emil Shuffhausen (aka Tom Bombadil) (Central Gulf Coast)
251 out of 279 found this review helpful
Mark Steyn, like P.J. O'Rourke, is an extraordinarily insightful and witty communicator who is not only an artist in the tapestry he weaves with words, but who has keen and piercing discernment into one of the most pressing issues of our time: the shockingly rapid and rabid advance of virulent violence in the name of religion.
Thankfully, unlike many lily-livered and wrong-headed authors of today, Steyn does not grant moral equivalency between faiths that promote peace and love, with faiths that promote hatred and terror. Steyn tells it like it is, and focuses on the real, specific threat to us all: the spread of Islamist extremism (differentiated from peace-loving Muslims). This aggressive terror movement quite literally threatens the very existence of Western Civilization and the freedoms of every single person reading this review.
Having been to Europe on several occasions, including recently, I can say that Steyn's observations about the encroaching threat are right on. Recently, French law enforcement officials have gone so far as to call for help, noting that what Islamist extremists and hoodlums are waging against them in France is an actual intifada. The Netherlands, also overwhelmed with angry immigrants who refuse to assimilate, is likewise facing an epic clash of cultures. In the UK, key cities are on the brink of becoming majority Muslim--a frightening percentage of whom believe that terrorism is a viable, moral option.
Could this happen in America? In fact, the seeds have already been planted. If you have been unaware or dismissive of this fact, then you absolutely must get Steyn's book and read it immediately.
This is not a book about partisanship. Whether one is a "conservative" or a "liberal," if you love America; if you love your family; if you love freedom...you owe it to yourself and your loved ones to get informed and get involved.
This is not a book of racism or bigotry. Steyn does not attack an ethnic group or, specifically, those who practice the Muslim faith. In fact, he sheds light on why Islamist extremism is the greatest danger to Muslims in the world today. (It should be noted that more Muslims and Arabs have been killed and persecuted and enslaved by Islamofacism than any other force.)
Some commentators and comedians casually dismiss or minimize the threat that we all face. For those of us who are Baby Boomers and Xers, it is perhaps deeply ingrained into our nature to pooh-pooh any talk of menace or serious threats to our way of life; this faulty mindset is born out of decades of complacency and relative peace. What is looming on the horizon is simply inconceivable to many. But then again, so was Pearl Harbor. And so was 9/11.
For the sake of the world--including moderate Muslims--it is vital that America (and all of the virtues for which it stands) wins in this struggle. It's high time to refute all of the self-loathing America-hating, traitorous professors and pundits here in this country, and the Euro-weenie hand-wringers on foreign shores, who blame the USA for all of the ills on the planet. Say it loud and clear: the USA has been an overwhelmingly postive force for good in this world, and it's survival is crucial for the prosperity of many nations and peoples.
War has been declared and waged against us; we ignore it at our own peril.
Incisive and Prophetic October 18, 2006
O. Cabrera (Germany)
87 out of 106 found this review helpful
Mr. Steyn's new book is a panoramic examination of our near-term future: the explosive growth of Muslim populations around the globe, the slow demographic death of Europe, the real-life consequences of the statist mentality at the national and individual levels, and what all of these portend for American national interests.
I live in Germany and have traveled to various European countries. There are many things of which you become aware when you actually live here, rather than traipse about for a couple of weeks during the summer. One of these is the lack of children: there are masses of elderly folks, but virtually no children. My wife and I have become so accustomed to this that, upon a short visit to the U.S. recently, we marveled at the proliferation of children everywhere we went. The second thing you notice when you interact intensively with the locals is the utter narcissism and self-absorption that characterizes Europeans of all ages. It's interesting to see so many individuals (ostensibly grown "adults") making such spectacles of themselves by trying all-and-sundry to hold on to their teen years. I can remember, from my graduate school years, the pathetic, self-deluded husks of middle age I saw at nightclubs, fresh from a divorce and sporting glaringly obvious comb-overs, trying desperately to "hook up" with women half their age. Now, imagine an entire continent of 30-, 40-, and 50-year-olds in similar straits. THAT is what it's like to live in Europe, folks.
Steyn's book reads like someone who has been here. This place truly is dying. Europe has become the museum of the world, working hard to maintain the crumbling relics of a by-gone era for the benefit of the tourists willing to pay to see them.
No one who has lived in Europe, who has had extensive interactions with Europeans (other than the elites), and who is tuned into every-day life can fail to see what is happening. We would be well-advised to pay attention to Mr. Steyn, instead of dismissing his theses.
Phenomenal. Buy it right now. October 11, 2006
MegaReader (Virginia, USA)
86 out of 95 found this review helpful
Steyn's latest book is one of about 15 or 20 in the new genre I'll call "WTF Is Happening To The World". Many of the books in this genre (Londonistan, While Europe Slept, Eurabia, all of the Spencer books, etc.) are extremely well written and well researched. Having read all of them, I was kind of wondering what was left to say.
Steyn's book does not present brand-new groundbreaking material, insofar as other authors in the genre discuss similar themes. The world is in serious trouble. Europe is toast. Islam is on the march, energized and confident. Etc. However, Steyn's book is unique in pulling it ALL together. This would be the one to read if you have time (or patience) for just one book on the Islamic threat. Steyn presents a well-reasoned argument that America is basically the last holdout or redoubt of the West, with Europe having basically been taken over, demographically if not yet militarily.
Steyn is, as others have noted here, humorous and witty. However, I find all the reviews of the book as "hilarious" (here and elsewhere) a bit odd, as if we're discussing the new season of South Park. There's nothing hillarious about Steyn's focus, which is, to put it simply, that Islam is conquering the western world by immigrating in, then procreating like rabbits, while entirely failing to integrate and living in separate ghettos, insisting that their new home countries adopt to their religious demands and intolerance, and recently, exerting the influence that comes from having 20-30-40 % of the under-25 population. What is hillarious about that? It's a poor choice of words. Steyn is extremely witty, clever and insightful - that's more than enough without having to present him as the new act on Comedy Central.
There are a lot of people in deep denial about the nature of the Islamic challenge across the world - from the 9/11 Truth morons to the many, many, many people, particularly in Europe but here too, who just want to cave and basically sue for peace rather than engage in this tiring fight for our survival as a culture. Unfortunately, no one book is going to wake these people up from their moral comas. However, Steyn usefully contributes to a body of knowledge and argument that, hopefully, over time will exert some influence and help people wake up.
In sum, I found this book not "hilarious" and rip roaringly funny, but rather, intelligent, witty, insightful, and important. It is currently the best book out there in explaining the complex, global nature of what is euphamistically called "The War On Terror" but is really a war for our survival against motivated, confident, and aggressive Islamists.
5 stars. Best-in-class book.
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