{"product_id":"i-wouldnt-start-from-here-the-21st-century-and-where-it-all-went-wrong-9781593762186","title":"I Wouldn't Start from Here: The 21st Century and Where It All Went Wrong","description":"What is a jaded rock journalist doing dodging landmines to talk to mercenaries and terrorists? And what kind of conversation can a man who prefers hunting for perfect three-minute pop songs and tubes of beer have with devotees of fasting and ferocity?\u003cbr\u003eSarajevo. Jerusalem. Kabul. Belfast. Kosovo. Gaza. Basra. New York City. Every place where recent history advertises the stubbornness, intolerance, bloodlust, and cowardice that sully our collective record, there the intrepid Andrew Mueller goes, skidding around the globe from failed state to ravaged war zone to desolate no-man's-land to try to unpick why we humans seem so prone to plucking war from the jaws of peace.\u003cbr\u003eEn route, he meets various influential panjandrums (Al Gore, Gerry Adams, Bono, Paddy Ashdown), any number of assorted warlords and revolutionaries, and a sprinkling of peacemakers and do-gooders. He also manages to get shot at, locked up, and taken on a tour by one of the world's most infamous terrorist organizations. It's like a Bond film with much, much less sex, and might appear for that and other reasons to be substantially a story of disappointment. Yet it's a surprisingly sunny book given the mire in which he finds himself.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Soft Skull\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/01\/2009\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781593762186\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 478\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.23lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.94h x 6.16w x 1.27d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/15\/2009 pg. 19\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/15\/2009 pg. 72\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Best Books\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/15\/2009 pg. 13\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Andrew Mueller","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43291191509173,"sku":"9781593762186","price":16.96,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_bd634a86-6aa4-41d7-817e-b52eec1fc8fe.jpg?v=1700541852","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/i-wouldnt-start-from-here-the-21st-century-and-where-it-all-went-wrong-9781593762186","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}