A thoughtful though limited discussion of a puzzling situation: Why, despite relative prosperity, is economic anxiety so high? Mandel, economics editor of BusinessWeek magazine, maintains that unlike the stable corporate world of the 1950s and '60s which offered low risks and high rewards, and the transitional period of the '70s and '80s, which imposed high risks and low rewards, we are now confronted with an era offering high risks and the potential for high rewards. Traditional business practices—loyalty, seniority, and a reliance on government regulation—no longer guarantee success. With quantum leaps in information technology, corporate downsizing, and government deregulation, the comfortable predictability of the good old days has been replaced by economic turmoil. The entire economy is now characterized by a dynamism previously limited to the financial markets, and success requires a bold strategy: Embrace risk. Corporations must invest in the development of innovative products and reorganize along untested lines; individuals must invest in future-oriented education and accept multiple job changes or self-employment; the alternatives are decreasing profits and income. The costs of the attendant uncertainty, however, are high, in terms of confusion in the marketplace, missed opportunities, cautious and confused investors. To mitigate the losses caused by this turbulent situation, Mandel proposes measures ranging from income averaging for tax purposes to linking compensation to futures markets. To his credit, Mandel acknowledges that those with substantial personal wealth and education are in a much better position to take risks, but he is more reticent about the increase in economic inequality that would result from his proposals. Accepting aggregate growth as the ultimate concern seems to crowd out serious consideration of distributive issues. While the trials and tribulations of uncertainty in economic life are not ignored, Mandel definitely looks at the current and future economy through rose-colored glasses. (12 tables, charts, and graphs, not seen) (Author tour)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8129-2637-4
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Times/Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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