Book review: Fortress Europe: dispatches from a gated continent

"Fortress Europe." Matthew Carr. Hurst. October 2012. --- For nearly thirty years the Berlin Wall symbolised a divided Europe. In the euphoric aftermath of the Cold War, the advent of a new borderless world was hailed, one in which such barriers would become obsolete. Today these utopian predictions have yet to be realised. An inspiring and thoroughly researched book, not afraid of communicating a clear political message and expressing severe criticism, Fortress Europe provides much room for discussion not only on EU immigration policies, but also on the norms, values and principles on which Europe builds itself and against which it is measured, writes Inez von Weitershausen

Book review: Europe in the new Middle East: opportunity or exclusion? by Richard Youngs

This book aims to examine the European Union’s response to the Arab spring, from late 2010 to the beginning of 2014. Through 12 chapters, Richard Youngs seeks to assess how far the EU changed its policies towards countries like Tunisia and Syria in the aftermath of the Arab spring. Inez von Weitershausen finds the book empirically rich, but recommends it only to well-read students and researchers due to its advanced framework

Book review: the hungry mind: the origins of curiosity in childhood

Curiosity is vital, but it remains a surprisingly understudied characteristic. The Hungry Mind explores what curiosity is, how it can be measured, how it develops in childhood, and how it can be fostered in school. Inez von Weitershausen finds that although the reader might have come across some of the insights in this book elsewhere, the author does a brilliant job connecting a wide range of essential 20th century research on the development of children

Book review: the European Council and the Council: new intergovernmentalism and institutional change by Uwe Puetter

Uwe Puetter offers a thorough account of Council decision-making by covering two decades of European integration from the late 1990s until the years after the Lisbon Treaty. Inez von Weitershausen recommends this book to readers with a high the level of pre-existing knowledge about EU governance

The German reaction to Theresa May’s speech: A mixed response to ‘hard Brexit’

Theresa May’s speech on 17 January laid out some of the key aims of the UK government as it seeks to leave the European Union. Inez von Weitershausen presents an overview of the reactions from Germany, writing that responses ranged from anger and disappointment to more hopeful calls for a constructive relationship with the UK following Brexit

Book review: the battle for Europe: how an elite hijacked a continent and how we can take it back by Thomas Fazi

In The Battle for Europe, Thomas Fazi argues that European Union elites have seized on the financial crash to push through damaging neoliberal policies, undermining social cohesion and vital public services. Showcasing a programme for progressive reform and outlining how citizens and workers of Europe can radically overhaul EU institutions, Fazi proposes size limits for banks, Eurobonds, and a separation of investment and commercial banking. Though some of these measures are neither new nor uncontested, and parts of the author’s arguments remain superficial, Inez Freiin-Von-Weitershausen finds that the book acts as a provocative exercise to test one’s attitude towards Europe and the current economic and financial system

Pro-EU politicians have so far failed to match the level of vision and imagination shown by Eurosceptics in the EP election campaign

The European Parliament elections on 22-25 May are expected to see a significant increase in support for Eurosceptic parties. Inez von Weitershausen writes that while this has been regarded by some commentators as a negative development, pro-EU politicians could also learn from the approach adopted by Eurosceptic leaders such as Nigel Farage. She argues that the one thing Eurosceptic parties have offered is a clear vision of the future of Europe and pro-EU politicians have an obligation to present the other side of the debate

Brexit has given an impetus to reshape Europe’s foreign, security and defence policies

As part of the ESRC-funded UK in a Changing Europe initiative, Benjamin Kienzle and Inez von Weitershausen created The Brexit Reader on Security & Defence, which provides academics, students and practitioners with a useful guide to the academic literature on the foreign, security, and defence implications of the UK’s decision to leave the EU

German election preview: four things to look out for as Germany goes to the polls

Most observers expect Angela Merkel's CDU/CSU to win Sunday's federal election in Germany, but the outcome of the vote will still have a major impact on the composition of the next government and the future direction of both Germany and the European Union. We asked four of our contributors for the key stories to watch as the results come in