A real surprise!

Anyone following the news will know Yanis Varoufarkis as the Greek Finance minister of 2015 and apparent 'anti capitalist'. Apparent? you might wonder! In this book the author imagines a parallel world after the 2008 stock market crash that takes a deeply socialist agenda. The characters are offered an explanation of the values of the alternative political system and eventually a clear choice, but the conclusion is far from the message you anticipate. You are drawn in to the ideology of a socialist system until 'boom' a reality is experienced by those sold on the alternative as they take that path. Strong on message but not possibly what readers/supports may want to hear

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An actual alternative.

Nicely written and engaging by using the fiction story to frame the arguments. very clever. really convincing and compelling alternative. Most of it I can imagine working. Not sure about all the committees people are supposed to participate in. I can see that being manipulated by a few strong characters. Although it's good the transition is dealt with, ie how people might work together to force governments to change, I can still see the resistance and appathy to this being so strong its not likely to happen.

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1 person found this helpful

A timely visionary with one foot in now and another where we could be!

As someone who appreciates the integrity of Mr Varoufakis and subscribed to many of his views, this was a joy to listen to and helped fan the flames of my own imagination for how our world could be ( always remembering the Einstein quote “imagination is more important than knowledge), and based on current events, may well be sooner than we thought possible.

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Tantalising look at alternatives to parts of our current society

Once you push through the slightly cheesy format and embrace the storytelling device as a more consumable method than lists of bullet points and process diagrams, it's a very interesting and surprisingly rich look at alternatives to our capitalist structures. It treads a careful line with the depth of explanation of the issues (for example workplace democracy and capital funding without money creation) between being so detailed as to be boring and being too thin on explanation as to make the alternative now seem unrealistic and facile. The steps towards the Other Now, as opposed to how it currently operates, are lightly detailed at times but present enough to give food for thought and further research. I liked how it showed conflicting opinions and how different value systems interpret the Other Now without explicitly settling on one as 'correct'.

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5 people found this helpful

A breath of fresh air.

A breath of fresh air. It nice to hear a story that give ideas and hope in what is now very challenging times. I've already brought few copeis to give to family and friends.

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Great vision of a left-wing society. Meh novel.

I really enjoyed this. As an explanation of a possible post-capitalist society, it's compelling.

However, don't go into this expecting a gripping plot with fleshed out characters. It's more of a socratic dialogue.

Still, the story and characters do just about enough to keep this from being just a dry description of a societal model. I was actually slightly moved by the ending.

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2 people found this helpful

Wise and compassionate analysis using the scientific method

This book Looks at current economic theory focusing on the reality of the continuous push for growth. It is full of evidence based on RCT’s . Highly recommend, the truth in here should be at the centre of any governments policy... if they actually care about their population.

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Excellent ideas-novel

I had to chuckle when I discovered that I’d unknowingly purchased a science fiction novel instead of another Varoufakis non-fiction book about economics and power. Quickly, though, I realised that this is the perfect vehicle for the author to flesh out, much like Aldous Huxley in ‘Island’, the complex structure of a differently organised society. With the last 40 years of familiar UK political history, the 2008 financial crisis and Covid as its backdrop, the three main characters discover a method to communicate with their alter-egos in an alternative reality in which the world took better choices. The narrative maintains suspense and emotional believability without becoming an info-dump, though detail there is aplenty. It’s a difficult balance to pull off but I think he’s achieved it admirably.

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interesting thought experiment

Generally I like Varoufakis' work but his this book convinced me he's much better at spotting problems than providing solutions. Several of the systems are horrible. For example, the prospect of being thrown out of your house every year would mean anyone would make a home their own, just live in a generic state of flux. Companies run in manner where people aren't obliged to do any particular task would also seem pretty doomed.
Still interesting ideas and worth a listen.

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3 people found this helpful

Will make you question

As a big fan of all his books, I was was much looking forward to Yanis Varoufakis latest. It didn’t disappoint. Great story, which really makes you think. It’s also reminded me to question assumptions I make because ‘that’s the way it’s always been’. Yanis really is a genius.

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2 people found this helpful