The Blue Age, Gregg Easterbrook
The Blue Age, Gregg Easterbrook
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The Blue Age
How the US Navy Created Global Prosperity--And Why We're in Danger of Losing It

Author: Gregg Easterbrook

Narrator: Joseph Bearor

Unabridged: 9 hr 55 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: PublicAffairs

Published: 09/07/2021

Synopsis

The US Navy brought half a century of peace and free trade to the world’s waterways. But climate change and rising nationalism threaten to end this blue age.
 
For decades, the Navy has stood sentinel over crucial waterways, ensuring safe passage of goods from nearly all nations. The result is the longest phase of peace on the waters since the Phoenicians, with rising living standards, more (total) jobs, and the dramatic decline of poverty in Asia.
 
But these prosperous times could be at an end. Today China is building warships at an extraordinary pace. India, Japan, Vietnam, and Europe are responding with more fighting ships. What will result from China’s rising naval might, particularly in the South China Sea? As ocean resources are shaped by climate change and new discoveries, will the world share them or fight over them? What will happen if America turns against free trade? Without American investment, the world could see a rise of supply shortages and seagoing conflict that would dwarf the impact of the container ship stuck in the Suez Canal.
 
Surveying naval history, economics, environmental threats, and great-power politics, The Blue Age makes an urgent argument about our oceans’ vital importance to the peace and prosperity of our global community.

Reviews

Goodreads review by D on February 12, 2022

Fairly entertaining yet poorly researched, Easterbrook makes a number of false statements. His information on US Navy rail guns is incorrect, his submarine history is off and his political beliefs jade his every sentence. But this is an important book that needed to be written. Because sea power is......more

Goodreads review by Russell on November 16, 2021

Easterbrook presents the case that the US Navy being dominant globally since the 1940's has led to unprecedented prosperity among nations conducting trade by sea. While many Americans (and British) decry globalization, in fact the world has gone from roughly 60% of people living in extreme poverty t......more

Goodreads review by Grouchy on September 17, 2021

So I wanted to like this, but between the authors snide political comments and his almost apologetic attitude toward China I just couldn’t. Read “To Rule The Waves”. It covers a similar set of topics without all the snide commentary.......more

Goodreads review by Joe on October 31, 2021

A must-read to understand our times, trade, America, and the US Navy I highly recommend this book to understand how we Americans are where we are in this age. We are in a Blue Age dependent on trade safeguarded by the US Navy’s dominance in guarding the sea lanes. China is a challenge but not yet a c......more

Goodreads review by Malin on March 01, 2022

I guess I’m not a military hawk. I lost interest. 2 stars.......more

Quotes

—Admiral (ret.) James Stavridis—“The Blue Age is brilliantly written, extremely well sourced, and remarkably accurate in its depiction of the centrality of the oceans to the well-being of our world. Set sail with the author and you will arrive at the port of enlightenment, with a deeper understanding of the sea —whether you are an experienced mariner or have always simply wondered why the oceans matter.”

—Marcia McNutt, president, National Academy of Sciences—“READ THIS BOOK! The Blue Age is a compelling account of how our unprecedented 75 years of pax oceanum came about, how fragile it might be, and what exactly is at stake.”

—Evan Thomas, author of Sea of Thunder and John Paul Jones—“Gregg Easterbrook is a genius at taking huge, complex, seemingly remote but deeply vital subjects, and making them into compelling, informative reading. With a vivid sense of history, clear thinking about the future, and a nice touch of irony and humor, he explains why our destiny lies on the waves of the blue oceans.”

—Jon Meacham, author of The Soul of America—“Gregg Easterbrook’s engaging new book is at once a reminder and a warning. He brilliantly reacquaints us with the vital role of sea power and focuses the mind on how the destinies of nations often turn on who controls the oceans and waterways of an ever-shrinking world.”

—David Malpass, President, World Bank  —“A captivating geopolitical case for the power of the sea and the key role of the U.S. Navy -- as a preface to the author's controversial prescriptions for maritime power sharing and innovation.”

–Helen Rozwadowski, University of Connecticut - Avery Point —“In this thought-provoking book, Gregg Easterbrook puts the oceans firmly in the center of a vitally important story about the past, present, and future.”

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