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The Almost Nearly Perfect People :Behind the Myth of the Scandinavian Utopia
The Almost Nearly Perfect People :Behind the Myth of the Scandinavian Utopia
paperback | English
Published:
12 February, 2015
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Description
A funny, fearless tour behind Scandinavia’s polished image.
Michael Booth has long been perplexed by strange paradoxes and character traits of the people of his adopted homelands – and equally bemused by the unquestioning enthusiasm for all things Nordic and hygge that has engulfed the rest of the world.
From his home in Denmark, he travels through Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland to uncover the truth behind the myth of the happiest people on Earth. Along the way a more nuanced, often darker picture emerges of a region plagued by taboos, characterised by suffocating parochialism and populated by extremists of various shades.
Part travelogue, part social investigation, and wholly entertaining, Booth asks tough questions about what happiness really means, how culture shapes wellbeing, and what the rest of the world can - and can’t - learn from the North.
‘The next Bill Bryson’ New York Times
‘Beautifully observed and very funny’ Rory Stewart
‘Comprehensive and occasionally downright hilarious’ Mariella Frostrup, Observer
More Details
| Type | Book |
|---|---|
| ISBN13 | 9780099546078 |
| ISBN10 | 0099546078 |
| Number Of Pages | 416 |
| Item Weight | 294 g |
| Product Dimensions | 130 x 198 x 26 mm |
| Publisher / Reseller | Vintage Publishing |
| Format | paperback |
Media Reviews
Comprehensive and occasionally downright hilarious... I was laughing out loud -- Mariella Frostrup * Observer *
An affectionate and informative study of a region. -- Ian Critchley * Sunday Times *
[An] entertaining, warts-and-all, English expat look at the Nordic miracle. * Daily Telegraph *
A thoroughly entertaining read, written brilliantly -- Bernard Porter * Literary Review *
A welcome rejoinder to those who cling to the idea of the Nordic region as a promised land...the substance, more often than not, is spot on. * Financial Times *
Every page contains at least one extraordinary fact about one or other of the Nordic countries. -- Craig Brown * Mail on Sunday *
Booth is an assiduous excavator of entertaining facts. -- Damian Whitworth * The Times *
An enjoyable, funny romp through the region...[Booth’s] enthusiasm is contagious. * Telegraph *
Booth does what the British do well. He writes irresistibly, ranging freely from serious, documented reportage to surprising conclusions... Simply a pleasure to read - 5 stars * Berlingske *
You get cleverer by reading him... funny and insightful - 4 stars * Jyllands Posten *
GoodReads Reviews
Author's Bio
Michael Booth is the author of six books, including the international bestseller, The Almost Nearly Perfect People, winner of the British Guild of Travel Writers award for Book of the Year, and Sushi and Beyond, which won the Guild of Food Writers award.