- Book title: The DNA of the USA. What makes America tick?
Autorin: Sandra Navidi
Finanzbuch Verlag
ISBN 978-3-95972-631-3
Preis: 22,00 € (D)
Hardback edition, 304 pages
When you look at something from the outside, things strike you very differently than when you are in the middle of it. This is also evident in Sandra Navidis' book: she grew up in Germany and has lived in her adopted country, the USA, for a quarter of a century. Many in this country know her as a conference speaker (for example at the last FONDSprofessionell congress in Mannheim) and from her numerous expert interviews, e.g. on n-TV.
Many myths debunked
People have very different images in their heads about the USA: the world's police force, from rags to riches, land of freedom, great melting pot, lax Weapon Acts.
Sandra Navidi takes a deep dive in her book. She does away with some of the existing images of the USA and shows in detail why they do not apply in reality. For the images that she can confirm, she explains the background in detail. In this way, the reader also understands how a man like Donald Trump could make it to the presidency in this country, why the Republicans are the way they are, and why the American legal system sometimes seems a little strange to us in Germany.
Precisely argued and statements clearly documented
Sandra Navidi doesn't bully the US, because she loves the country she lives in. But she takes a close look and scrutinises things, many of which she probably only notices because she came to the country from outside. With the precision of a lawyer (which Navidi is), she cites evidence for her arguments, and anyone who wants to delve even deeper will find extensive references in the book's appendix.
I have to admit: The title didn't call out to me "read me by all means!", but once I had the book in my hand, I couldn't put it down, that's how it grabbed me.
Incidentally, the book has been nominated for the "German Business Book Prize 2023" - and rightly so, in my opinion!
Conclusion:: Worth reading, contemporary, clearly argued and pleasant to read.
Anke Dembowski is a financial journalist and author of various investment fund-related and other financial books. She is also a co-founder of the "Fondsfrauen" network.