Hello!

On Writer Wednesday, I discuss another author and his or her book that I’ve recently read. Today’s pick is Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps that tell you everything you need to know about the world by Tim Marshall.

History and politics are influenced by geography. That’s basically the crux of geopolitics. In this brilliant book, several major countries and regions of the world are discussed within their own unique geographic location.

Having studied history-focused International Relations and having done research that centers on the intersection of history, International Relations, politics, geography, and geopolitics, I was especially eager to read this book. It jumped out from the shelf at the bookstore. I was not disappointed!

Topics such as what countries have green or blue navies (basically, are they guarding their coasts or going farther out to sea), examining why Russia is expansive in character, understanding how mountains have kept the peace between neighbors, and how rivers have hampered or encouraged settlement patterns are explored. Of special interest to me, given my research areas,was how lines on a map can be arbitrarily drawn and greatly influence history. I’ve studied that extensively.

Geography is both man-made, through cartography, as well as a product of natural features. In both cases, geography has shaped our history and continues to impact our present and will do so into the future. New technologies are changing the way that geography is dealt with, but geography still remains heavily influential in our world.

My best to you all,
Megan