The Statesman's Yearbook 2001: The Politics, Cultures and Economies of the World Book

Dickens's Mr Gradgrind would have loved this book. It's facts, facts, facts and nothing but facts. It's the pocket battleship of fact-books, the one that makes the rest look lightweight; 2,000 densely packed pages give detailed statistics on every country in the world, plus a one-page summary of its recent history. And these statistics really are detailed, incredibly detailed. Want to know the population, area and chief town of each of the provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire)? Communications statistics for Indonesia? The facts on Canada's International Relations? Social Institutions of France? Constitution and Government of Sikkim? International trade figures for India? The climate of Israel? The addresses of selected diplomatic representatives of Italy? This book will tell you all of the above, and far more. If you aren't content with its precise and detailed statistical description of every nation, and many of the states and provinces within those nations, in the areas mentioned above and others besides (most economic, geographical and political categories are covered), it gives you suggestions for further reading. And that's just Part 2 of the book. Before you get to the "Countries of the World A-Z" there are over 100 pages on international organisations, plus a week-by-week chronology of world events March 1999 to April 2000, and essays on "The Single Currency" by Leon Brittan, "The Changing Pattern of Arms Control" by Ian Anthony and "Europe Sans Frontieres" by Barry Turner.As you might have gathered, it's heavy-duty reference. There are only tiny black-and-white locator maps and an accompanying colour fold-out geopolitical map (which shows the flags of the world's 191 countries, by the way) to make it more digestible. If you want in-depth information on everywhere, however, this is the book. No wonder The Daily Telegraph called it "a masterpiece of pure quantification". --David PickeringRead More