Rating: 
Summary: Required reading for the global economy
Review: Globalization is an extremely difficult subject to manage. This book is an excellent place to start. Friedman's anecdotes provide an easy-to-follow story of how the global economy is forming. It's true that Friedman is a globalization champion, but he does present both sides of a divisive issue. For example, Friedman's "McDonald's theory" shows how a more interconnected world may reduce the possibility of conflict, but he also shows how globalization can harm the environment and produce "fringe" people that may cause harm to nations like the United States. Is this the total answer to globalization? Of course not--no one can totally comprehend this subject. However, Friedman does as well as anyone. This book should be required reading in business curricula as a way to begin discussions on globalization.
Rating: 
Summary: excellent understanding of globalization, however biased
Review: A very well written book about globalization. The last few chapters however makes you feel you are watching independence day where America saves the world from the evils of the universe. Well I agree that America has been in a position where it has global responsibilities, and I agree that so many nations envy America for what it is now. However, the author makes it sound as if everything in America is so very GOOD, and everything elsewhere is NOT. He mentions education, political freedom, capital markets, corporate system, reaction to global events as few of many examples of American superiority. Otherwise, he clearly demonstrates globalization from different prespectives that are both interesting and entertaining. He simply compares globalization as opposed to the Cold war era, and describes it with three main characteristics: Democracy of 1. Communication 2. Finance 3. Information And I agree with him, but my favourite part of the book was his recommendations of 9 habbits of companies/countries who can survive the aggressive competetiveness of this era. Overall it is a Should Read Book.
Rating:
Summary: A Very Important Book
Review: There can be no doubt that The Lexus and The Olive Tree is a very interesting and, probably, important book. Globalization has become a household word, yet there are few, including me, who really understand all of its ramifications. Not since Nicholas Negroponte's Being Digtal has a book come along that helps us understand the real meaning of globilazation as well as does The Lexus and the Olive Tree.Friedman see globilization as the defining theory of the post-Cold War world. The lexus, to Friedman, is the pinnacle of high-quality production, and high-quality production is what makes globilization possible. The olive tree is seen as the symbol of wealth in pre-modern, "slow" economies. Friedman defines globilization as that cluster of trends and technologies (the Internet, fiber optics, digitalization, satellite communications) that have served to increase productivity and speed up international business since 1989, the year of the fall of the Berlin Wall. During this period, the cost of communications has declined with more and more people now accessing sources of finance and technology. In fact, anyone who has ever used the Internet for research or simply sent or received an email is a part of the "democratization" of globilization. Virtually every page in the book contains information so important you might want to keep a pencil handy to underline. For example, Friedman tells us that, as far as globilization is concerned, the most frequently asked question is, "How fast is your modem?" Friedman does wax a bit grandiose at times. He is certainly a name-dropper extraordinnaire. The man, however was foreign affairs columnist for the New York Times. He certainly has meet and chatted with all the people he talks about; we don't doubt that, we just get a little tired of hearing about it. His imaginary arguments between real political figures can be a little annoying as are his overly-clever chapter titles. These things, however, can be easily overlooked. One thing that really does mar this otherwise excellent book is Friedman's extreme sense of patriotism. He seems to view globilization as just another reason to exercise the doctrine of Manifest Destiny. We are definitely not living behind the times here in Western Europe; in fact, in many areas of technology we are far superior, a fact that Friedman sadly overlooks. Despite this book's one glaring fault, it is still extremely important and should not be overlooked. Friedman's message is clear and it does make sense: Forget old ideas of a first, second and third world. They just don't exist. In today's society, all that matters is the Fast World and the Slow World and those who don't keep up will find themselves out in the cold.
Rating:
Summary: Great book Tom, now try again.
Review: The book is part travelogue and part essay; a super-expanded rambling Tom Friedman newspaper column. The book does not set forth a straight forward treatise (but I wasn't looking too closely). Instead, you can randomly choose any page or any chapter and find example after example of what is happening around the world. He provides a good human portrait of the economic forces affecting people and vice versa, which is not reported by our shallow tabloid news or our more reputable trade magazines/journals. His approach is to inductively and metaphorically convey his main ideas. This is the book's charm. It is an enjoyable and easy read; easy to pick-up and put down, and it does not require extensive devotion of time and mental energy to finish. The media seems to think global trade is a recent phenomena. Global trade and globalization is older than the Greeks. The 20th century only made international commerce cheaper, more efficient, and faster. I would very highly recommend "Merchants make history; how trade has influenced the course of history throughout the world," by Ernst Samhaber. Translated by E. Osers. (out of print). Like Friedman, Samhaber does not get bogged down in pedantics, but unlike Friedman, Samhaber provides a coherent non-discombobulated discourse on the evolution and advancements/changes of the history of global trade. Samhaber provides a nice counter-balance to the war and king centered explanation of history, and provides an excellent primer from the Greeks to the 19th century from where Friedman can take off.
Rating: 
Summary: The Lexus runs over the olive tree...yay!
Review: According to Tom Friedman's "Lexus and the Olive Tree", globalization is not only inevitable, but it's a wondrous and many splendored thing to be embraced and celebrated. Oh, and by the way, if you don't embrace and celebrate globalization, you'll be left in the dust bin of history along with all the other losers and be forever stuck with a bunch of stupid olive trees instead of a nice shiny [begin using Homer Simpson voice here] Lexus (d'oh! ). Lexus...McDonalds....Shopping Malls...Beer....aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh! [ok, you can stop using the Homer Simpson voice now!]. Basically, this is a good book if you want to understand globalization. But it's a bad book if you want to understand why globalization might not be an unmitigated great thing. Because, according to Friedman, globalization is [Tony the Tiger voice here] totally grrrrrreat! And who needs all those stupid old olive trees (i.e., your culture, traditions, values, language, music, art, family, religion) anyway when you can eat at a McDonalds (conveniently located in your local mall), people speaking English (not their antiquated and useless native tongues, for heaven's sake), work for a friendly (and of course benign, because if it weren't it would immediately get trashed all over the internet and would be forced to change - have faith!) multinational corporation, listen to American popular music, watch American TV and movies, dress like an American, adopt the same capitalist economic values as Americans (the only ones that have any chance of working anyway!), and basically, just BE an American! Hey, it's inevitable anyway, and resistance is futile, so you might as well lay back and enjoy it! But, the problem is - and this is sacrilege and stupidity to Friedman -- what if you don't WANT to be an American? What if you'd rather take a siesta in the afternoon, or drink wine and nibble cheese at the local family-owned café you've been going to for years, or actually meet your friends PHYSICALLY (as opposed to virtually over the - bow down as you say this word -- INTERNET), or prefer to have less manufactured stuff (and hence, slower economic "growth") and more olive trees? Well, sorry buddy, but you better just [you can use a drill sergeant voice here if you want] GET WITH THE PROGRAM! and fast, or you're going to be left behind everyone else smart enough to put on their golden straitjackets! Anyway, if you want to understand globalization (which you should if you want to understand the world you live in and where it is going), this book is as good a place as any to start, I suppose (if you can get past all the annoying anecdotes, bad jokes, and cloying banalities which Friedman crams in - probably in an effort to be entertaining and not too heavy and seem really witty and urbane and sell LOTS OF BOOKS!). But, if you want to really think about what this book SHOULD have been about - what do we want out of life, more olive trees or more Lexuses? - then you'll have to go elsewhere. In Friedman's world, the olive trees don't stand a chance!
Rating:
Summary: A failed hero's journey
Review: It's an unusual work of mythology, disguised as economics. The author starts out in the palace (like the young Buddha), with the fresh oranges. He ventures out into the world & sees change. He reports on what he sees and his growing understanding. He meets with maimed Fisher Kings (rulers who have been gored by the 'electronic herd') & has lots of adventures. Like Luke Skywalker , he learns about the 'Force' which he calls Globalization. Sadly the author somehow misses the point of the journey, fails to become enlightened, and comes back to us bearing the news that Bill Clinton and the Democratic party are messiahs.
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Summary: Practical Mythology 101
Review: This guy is an exellent propagandist. What's the heel of Achilles? Limits and especially the limited supply of the fifty metals and minerals which make the American industrial dream possible. But rigorous consideration of these limits does not compliment his distorted presentation. Not one of these fifty is produced at levels as great as even 50% within the borders of the US, most at levels between 0% and 30%. Globally 20% of humans use what's available and of course the other 80% desire it. One must agree with him there. They do desire it. The 80% desire industrialization and it's fruits. Industrialization and it's fruits make it possible for example, to dispose of our excreta conveniently. But lacking the necessary metals and minerals the 80% are not able to create the industrial infrastructure for the centralized sewerage systems or the soft paper tissues, or the houses, much less the automobiles which make our life both enjoyable and desirable. That's why one must be prepared to speak softly and to carry a big stick. Globalization is an effective way to speak softly. It is an enticing fantasy. It instills hope in the disenfranchised majority of humans and erases guilt in the affluent minority. Both groups desperately want to believe it. So the best thing is to just be silent. Myths are necessary. A supporter of our current global status quo should accept the myth of globalization a priori and ignore the reality of the real limits to industrialization. And then there is the ecology question. Ecology? Did someone mention ecology? Habitat? Biodiversity? Do we really need that? Nah. Let's use technology to create habitat -- AFTER we've used technology to destroy it. It took tens of millions of years to produce. But it'll be really easy to reconstruct. The vast majority of Americans are scientifically illiterate and their ignorance of the science of ecology renders them virtual ecological morons. But they want to be free to believe in "globalization." Do you want to deny them that freedom? If you do it'll cost YOU. A wink is as good as a nod to a blind mule.
Rating:
Summary: Elucidating, but perhaps slightly biased...
Review: Mr. Friedman is undoubtedly one of the best nonfiction writers around these days, and the variety of topics he's covered - from the conflict in the Middle East to globalization - is direct proof that the man is blessed with a solid talent for analysis. By no means am I an expert on things capitalistic, and globalization, notwithstanding the fact that I, along with everyone else on the planet, live in it, is a topic to which I hadn't paid too much attention in the past. This book served as a primer, and now that I've read it, I see some of its observations popping up everywhere around me; a lot of the things that are discussed in the book DO apply to the world around us. One point of contention, though: Mr. Friedman is very keen on making the United States the sole superpower in charge of driving the whole world. Now, I agree that the US has a very important role to play, and will do so for several years to come (barring any unforeseen catastrophes). But sometimes I get the feeling that Mr. Friedman might just be a little to pro-American, and, on occasion, this seems to blur his vision. While dubbed pro-globalization by the media, Mr. Friedman nevertheless warns us of the dangers of Americanization and what deleterious effects such a phenomenon has on the various cultures. An altogether interesting read, in which we all learn a lot from a superb mind. The experience, however, is, on occasion, marred by recurrent typos (a book on this topic should NEVER spell entrepreneur the wrong way, but it does!) and a few editorial oversights... All in all, this book has helped me better understand the world I live in and where we might end up a few decades down the road.
Rating:
Summary: Bravo for anecdotes!
Review: If you ever wondered if you'll find a Kentucky Fried Chicken while experiencing an 'AUTHENTIC ETHNIC MOMENT ON THE BEACH IN QATAR' or if you SIMPLY WONDER WHAT IT'S LIKE TO HAVE DINNER WITH New York Times' top foreign affairs columnist, you'll be AMUSED. -- ENTERTAINING, if you enjoy travel stories of a good journalist. -- A WASTE, if you're seeking to be convinced that the world is 'a single global village.'
Rating:
Summary: Fast-paced Perspective on Globalization
Review: Tom Friedman captures the powerful forces that are transforming the world in an anecdote-packed, fast-paced book that highlights the many virtues (and few drawbacks) of the globalization era. Most readers will find highly informative Friedman's account of how even the most remote outposts are being re-shaped by the spread of technology, information, democracy and free-market capitalism. Everyone this side of the Seattle World Trade protestors will find this book beneficial to read.
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