Reviews for Fascism: A Warning

by Madeleine Albright with Bill Woodward

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

A close observer of world governments sounds an alarm about threats to democracy.Former Secretary of State Albright (Prague Winter: A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948, 2012, etc.) offers an authoritative and well-grounded analysis of the growing rise of fascism around the world. Why, she asks, "has international momentum toward democracy slowed, and why are so many charlatans seeking to undermine public confidence in elections, the courts, the media," and science? She counts the current president among the charlatans. "Trump's eyes light up," she writes, "when strongmen steamroll opposition, brush aside legal constraints, ignore criticism, and do whatever it takes to get their way." A fascist leader, Albright asserts, uses any means necessary to command obedience and therefore depends on a popular base willing to take orders. Preying upon the "fears and hopes of average people," fascism begins insidiously, with "a seemingly minor character" who professes to be the single person to solve a nation's problems. Deteriorating social and economic conditions offer an opportunity for "a gifted pied piper" to rise. As Mussolini observed, those seeking power should "do so in the manner of plucking a chickenfeather by feather" to keep the process as quiet as possible. "Soon enough," warns Albright, "the government that silences one media outlet finds muffling a second easer." Besides providing an overview of the careers of Mussolini and Hitler, Albright looks at leaders such as Venezuela's Hugo Chvez, Turkey's Recep Erdogan, Hungary's Viktor Orban, and Russia's Vladimir Putin. Putin, she observes, is not yet a "full-blown" fascist, but he "has flipped through Stalin's copy of the totalitarian playbook and underlined passages of interest to call on when convenient." Albright concludes with 10 questions to ask of any prospective leader: Do they inflame prejudices and incite desire for revenge; encourage contempt for governing institutions, the press, and the judiciary; exploit symbols of patriotism; brag about their power to solve all problems; and exhibit "pumped up machismo about using violence"?Sage advice in perilous times. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.


Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

*Starred Review* The founders of fascism Mussolini, Hitler, and Stalin and fascism's current practitioners Kim Jong-un, Vladimir Putin, and Recep Erdogan are profiled in former secretary of state and author Albright's (Prague Winter, 2012) cautionary primer on what democracy's antithesis looks like. Fascism is a term that is not easily nor universally defined, filtered, as it is, through the lens of personal biases and animosities. How, then, does one recognize fascism, and why is it important to do so now? Albright is forthright in stating that one reason is Donald Trump, and although her regime-by-regime analysis of fascism's genesis and evolution is not a de facto indictment of the current administration, it is a call to pay attention to the changes in America's national discourse and global standing under the Trump administration. Having fled both Hitler's Germany and Czechoslovakia's Communist uprising as a child, Albright's acquaintance with fascism is practically a part of her DNA. With America's global standing now downgraded from full democracy to flawed democracy by the Economist Intelligence Unit, this is no time for complacency. Albright outlines the warning signs of fascism and offers concrete actions for restoring America's values and reputation. There is priceless wisdom on every page.--Haggas, Carol Copyright 2018 Booklist


Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Former U.S. secretary of state Albright began work on this book before the 2016 election as a response to assaults on democratic values in other countries but asserts its relevance only increased during and since the election. In discussions during Albright's classes at Georgetown University, she and her students concluded that fascism should be viewed more as a means of seizing and holding power than as a political ideology. They defined it as an extreme form of authoritarian rule linked to a doctrine of rabid nationalism. Through her perspective as a victim of Hitler's takeover of her native Czechoslovakia in 1938, Albright summarizes the history of fascism from its origins in Italy during the 1920s and rise in Germany in the 1930s. The author further documents modern experiences in countries such as Venezuela, Turkey, and Hungary that have replaced democratic systems with more authoritarian governments and relates meeting former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, explaining why government may best represent fascism today. Albright hopes that citizens are aware of the challenges to democratic values; for freedom to survive, she believes, it must be defended. Verdict Readers interested in political systems and international relations will appreciate Albright's outlook. [See Prepub Alert, 10/9/17.]-Jill Ortner, SUNY Buffalo Libs. © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.


Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Yes, it can happen here-and in other countries-according to Albright's far-ranging exploration of the history and latter-day prospects of fascism. The Georgetown professor and former Clinton secretary of state identifies various characteristics of fascism, including hypernationalism and populism mixed with authoritarian-leaning rule, militarism, contempt for democratic customs, persecution of minority populations, a dread of disorder and decadence, charismatic leaders, and public spectacles. After probing accounts of the fascist models of Mussolini's Italy and Hitler's Germany, she finds that toxic brew in present-day Venezuela, Turkey, Hungary, Poland, Russia, North Korea, and right-wing parties generally. And then, she writes, there's Donald Trump, "the first anti-democratic president in modern U.S. history," whose bluster, "paranoid bigotry" against Muslims and immigrants, America-firstism, and rhetorical attacks on the press and judiciary set a fascistic example for world leaders and abdicate America's role as global protector of democracy. Albright's incisive analyses are enriched by her experiences as a refugee from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia-her Jewish grandmother died in a concentration camp-and as America's diplomat-in-chief; her vivid sketch of a surprisingly rational Kim Jong-Il anchors a sharp critique of Trump's erratic approach to North Korea. Albright sometimes paints with too broad a brush in conceptualizing fascism, but she offers cogent insights on worrisome political trends. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

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