{"product_id":"europes-orphan-martin-sandbu-9780691168302","title":"Europe's Orphan: The Future of the Euro and the Politics of Debt","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA timely account of the Euro crisis that challenges our assumptions about debt and economic recovery\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOriginally conceived as part of a unifying vision for Europe, the euro is now viewed as a millstone around the neck of a continent crippled by vast debts, sluggish economies, and growing populist dissent. In \u003ci\u003eEurope's Orphan\u003c\/i\u003e, leading economic commentator Martin Sandbu presents a compelling defense of the euro. He argues that rather than blaming the euro for the political and economic failures in Europe since the global financial crisis, the responsibility lies firmly on the authorities of the eurozone and its member countries. The eurozone's self-inflicted financial calamities and economic decline resulted from a toxic cocktail of unforced policy errors by bankers, politicians, and bureaucrats; the unhealthy coziness between finance and governments; and, above all, an extreme unwillingness to restructure debt. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSandbu traces the origins of monetary union back to the desire for greater European unity after the Second World War. But the euro's creation coincided with a credit bubble that governments chose not to rein in. Once the crisis hit, a battle of both ideas and interests led to the failure to aggressively restructure sovereign and bank debt. Ideologically informed choices set in motion dynamics that encouraged more economic mistakes and heightened political tensions within the eurozone. Sandbu concludes that the prevailing view that monetary union can only work with fiscal and political union is wrong and dangerous--and risks sending the continent into further political paralysis and economic stagnation. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eContending that the euro has been wrongfully scapegoated for the eurozone's troubles, \u003ci\u003eEurope's Orphan\u003c\/i\u003e charts what actually must be done for the continent to achieve an economic and political recovery.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Martin Sandbu\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 069116830X\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780691168302\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Princeton University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/29\/2015\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 336\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.30lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.40h x 6.20w x 1.10d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 08\/31\/2015","brand":"Martin Sandbu","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":47520287064319,"sku":"9780691168302","price":29.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_ee60cad2-638a-4fde-9fd0-d24cba69c803.jpg?v=1762884673","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/europes-orphan-martin-sandbu-9780691168302","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}