Made in the USA

October 15, 2013

Smil (emeritus, Univ. of Manitoba; Should We Eat Meat? Evolution and Consequences of Modern Carnivory) brings his intellect and interdisciplinary perspective to the history of industrialization and deindustrialization in America to argue that owing to American inventiveness, access to cheap energy and raw materials, and management expertise, America was transformed in the late 19th century into the world's most productive and powerful industrial nation. In particular, Smil notes that steel making, auto production, and innovation in information communication and organization helped America win two world wars and, in the post-World War II era, to create the first mass-consumption society. The author seeks to refute the fashionable economic notion that the country can prosper with a postindustrial, service-based economy and does so convincingly. Societies that manufacture little at home, he explains, are dependent on foreign countries for the basic tools of economic prosperity, and low-wage service sector jobs undermine the middle class created by America's manufacturing economy. VERDICT Written in knowledgable and clear prose, this informative and persuasive book will appeal to economists, political junkies, and policy wonks.--Duncan Stewart, Univ. of Iowa Libs., Iowa City

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