Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Ana Partanen simply does not convince me of anything beyond what I already knew about America and Nordic countries. This book was a tiresome, shallow, didactic experience of a Finnish woman lecturing me about America's problems, after less than a decade of living in this country. Partanen's perspective is privileged, unrelatable, and unsympathetic to most Americans who actually live here for a significant time, and under conditions that are actually oppressive and debilitating. (If your worst concession is that you'll have to move back to Finland to raise your children, you are not relatable on the subject of your book.) Reading this book was like a thin person pointing out to an overweight person that she is fat and ought to diet and exercise. Thanks! Didn't know! Problem solved! I wanted this book to show me some interesting, balanced examples of how citizens living in Nordic countries both thrive and struggle in their style of government. Instead, Partanen merely brushes off any negative aspects about Nordic states, if she mentions them at all, and heavily criticizes those of America's, without investigating the very complex reasons of why this country has the problems it has. Her denial of a homogeneous culture in Scandinavia is laughable, and if she thinks that doesn't have any impact on the style of government and its ability to be flexible and adaptable, she's delusional. One or two anecdotes from your elitist friends do not prove your points. Merely mentioning the massive problems in Scandinavian countries without further investigation does not equate to fair-mindedness. One measly line mentioning the race issues in America is pathetically under-representing how powerless the most disenfranchised people in this system are, how merciless they are to the machinations of government and obstacles of society. Not once in this book will you find even a suggestion of how to implement such changes into the American system beyond, "You should do x like Finland!". It won't be too soon if I never read the words "Nordic theory of love" again. The theme of individual self-sufficiency and independence is wonderful, but that is essentially parenting advice. I don't even disagree with this; I enthusiastically support this value. I just feel it is an inappropriate criticism that does not foster any substantive discussion on government's role in your life. She might have understood this if she had actually spoken to someone who wasn't an academic or in her Manhattan/Finland social circles. This simply is not a comprehensive and meaningful examination of how the most disaffected in our society feel about the government, and how the people in charge are the ones who benefit most. Of course we want free and equal education for all. Of course we want to mitigate health care costs for all and dismantle the repugnant health insurance/drug company industry. Of course we want to have long vacations and maternity leave and life-affirming, well-paying jobs. But Finland's demographic and its role on an international scale are so dramatically different from America's, that it is impossible and foolish to equate the two. She managed to cobble a dozen or so contributions that the Nordic countries have made to the world - shall we count America's? Taxes, health care, health insurance, education - these are complex issues that operate so far above the average American citizen's ability to change them, despite everyone's dissatisfaction with them. It's pretty rude to point out the obvious without even offering a solution. These issues deserve more due diligence. Ultimately, this could be an illuminating book for a reader who knows absolutely nothing about the Nordic states. But do not let this author fool you into thinking that there are easy answers or easy problems in America, nor are there zero problems in Finland. There are a few interesting and positive things to take away from the book, particularly the perspective on marriage and the autonomy of children at home and in school. I also appreciate it for introducing me to the Law of Jante. But this book does not do thorough justice to the serious issues that it attempts to address, and thus undermines Partanen's endeavor to compare Finland/Nordic countries to America. It is a reductive powerpoint presentation for a social studies class. Edit: Please remember that a few anecdotes from a book cannot demonstrate the reality of Finnish Health Care. Just one example:[...]