Caught in the Middle: America's Heartland in the Age of Globalism

by Richard C. Longworth

A sharp, brilliantly reported look at how globalization is changing America from the inside out.

The Midwest has always been the heart of America―both its economic bellwether and the repository of its national identity. Now, in a new, globalized age, the Midwest is challenged as never before. With an influx of immigrant workers and an outpouring of manufacturing jobs, the region that defines the American self― the Lake Wobegon image of solid, hardworking farmers and factory hands―is changing at breakneck speed. As factory farms and global forces displace old ways of life, the United States is being transformed literally from the inside out. In Caught in the Middle , longtime Chicago Tribune reporter Richard C. Longworth explores the new reality of life in today's heartland and reveals what these changes mean for the region―and the country. Ranging from the manufacturing collapse that has crippled the Midwest to the biofuels revolution that may save it, and from the school districts struggling with new immigrants to the Iowa meatpacking town that can't survive without them, Longworth addresses what's right and what's wrong in the region, and offers a prescription for how it must change―politically as well as economically―if it is to survive and prosper.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, History, Economics, Journalism, Urban Planning, Adult

320 pages, Hardcover

First published December 26, 2007

Reviews

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

DESPERATION, DESOLATION AND DESPAIR; amidst the “decay of decline.” Those are the good things to be said for the mid-western United States in the early twenty-first century.

The message Richard C. Longworth has to deliver to the Midwest, in his excellent, comprehensive, aptly named book, ‘Caught in the Middle,’ seems to be: ‘The industrial age is gone. Forever. Get over it.’ This is the age of Globalization. You bet big, in the past, on heavy industry and small farms; and you won big for a hundred years. But those days are really over. For good.

As he cogently makes clear, the days of the high-paid, low skilled, industry-jobs are gone. Though much of the region stays in denial. Today, “Basically, any job that does not require face-to-face contact with a customer can be outsourced.” –pg. 11 Hundreds-of-thousands of jobs in manufacturing and farming already have been.

Longworth makes the strongest pro-immigrant labor argument I’ve ever read. Thank-you. He even goes so far as to draw a connection between the percent of foreign-born residents in a city’s population with its outlook for promise and prosperity. I mostly agree with his commentary on immigrant labor—it is a net economic gain for all concerned—but for me the jury’s still out as to whether the presence of a low-paid immigrant work force is more a cause of, or more an effect of promise and prosperity.

The author relates that, “Month’s of travel and study through the towns and cities of the Midwest have made up my mind. The Midwest needs all the immigrants it can get.” “Wherever they have gone in the Midwest, immigrants have enriched their new homes—occasionally, even saved them from a slow death.”—pg. 138 There’s really nothing new in this. It was hard-working, foreign-born labor, albeit mostly European, that built the big industries in the region, and the Midwest itself, to begin with.

Recommendation: This is an insightful read for anyone interested in 21st century economics, especially as regards the impact of globalization on societies and cultures. In the words of the song, ‘The times, they are a’changin’." Big time.


Won from First Reads

[Cissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up in the Midwest- the Minnesota Twin Cities, to be specific- and so I have both a theoretical and a personal interest in the topics addressed in this book. I think Longworth makes many good points; however, I also think he has some blind spots that affected his arguments, solid though they are in many ways.

The most glaring incompatibility I see has to do with immigration and race. Why is it necessary for us to have badly-educated immigrants, essentially making a permanent new underclass, when we already have badly educated citizens who could in theory do the same work? Longworth is sanguine about the lack of prospects for immigrants (legal and not) and their children though he does encourage education for such; however, he also says, basically. "the poor are always with you" and in facts argues that importing more poor is necessary to our society's functionality. This may be true. However, when he also describes companies moving their plants out of the inner cities expliciltly to get rid of black workers, then sending buses to Hispanic neighborhoods to get them instead... well, that starts sounding a lot like racism (which he does say), and to my mind challenges the necessity of ill-educated and badly-paid immigrants since it seems like we already have a surplus of such IF the companies that want them would be willing to hire them. Of course, American citizens would be less likely to put up with abusive working conditions- hence the "need" for immigrants, especially illegal ones. I do not consider this to be anything like a reasonable argument once it's stripped to its bare bones. Plus: blaming our citizen underclass for their own plight, while advocating importing workers to make it worse, strikes me as perverse.

"Globalization", as Longworth describes it, seems to be based on cheap oil. Oil for transportation; oil for fertilizers; oil for pesticides... but it's all oil, and if one removes cheap oil from the picture- somehow, the idea that it's good to get all our food from far away starts to look dubious. Maybe those outdated, small, broadly-based farms are not as impractical as all that, if we can't count on getting cheap grapes from Chile on a regular basis. Personally, I am not at all sure that cheap oil is going to last all that much longer; it's sure getting more expensive in general- as is our food, in what I think is not a coincidence. I am wondering whether, globalization or not, it will continue to make sense 10, 20, 30 years hence to ship even trivial items around the world.

While I have a few more quibbles with some of Longworth's premises, these are, I think, my main ones. It's an interesting book, and it's very well-researched; I just wish the author had made a few more connections, and applied a bit more forward thinking to hos premises; that would have made it a lot stronger.

I received this book for free as a part of an early reviewer program.

[Kristen Northrup · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this mainly because I recently moved to the Midwest, but it turns out that the author thinks that the Great Plains are separate from the Midwest rather than a subset thereof, so the book technically didn't apply to me. But plenty of it was nevertheless applicable. He's certainly firm about the Midwest bringing most of their problems down upon themselves -- that the problems of globalization (which he never quite defines) are an inevitable result of the Rust Belt downturn of the early 80s, so they should have been better prepared and known that tax breaks solve nothing. There's also quite a bit on how the fetishizing of the 'good old days' interferes with innovation and progress.

Discussion of unions was unusually well-balanced. They're neither purely hero nor villain here. He's relatively sympathetic (if unyielding) to the people losing a rather indulgent way of life, but does skip any examination of whether the next generation would want that particular American Dream anyway. The entitlement culture in the one-family/one-factory towns was interesting and sad and oddly similar to celebrity culture.

There isn't much comparison to the rest of the country. The coasts are sort of ignored, especially when he brags about how all change starts in the Midwest. His description of Cascadia is disorienting if you're actually from there. And he flat-out insults the south (although not as much as he does poor Indiana).

The book does seem to have been written in a hurry, or at least not well edited. China is not a third world country. He goes from calling the bucolic Midwest imaginary in one chapter to real and typical in the next. Rural use of the internet is underestimated. A more thorough recap of NAFTA could have helped.

The discussions on immigration (and race in general) made me uneasy, but it's not like anyone else has come up with useful ideas. His ethanol predictions were solid and the ideas for education probably the most interesting and innovative part of the book.

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: In Caught in the Middle, Richard Longworth takes a close look at how globalization has impacted America’s Midwest—once a booming hub of industry and agriculture, now a region facing economic and social challenges. He weaves together historical context, research, and personal stories from people living in small towns and cities across the Heartland. The result is a deep dive into how global forces are reshaping a part of America often left out of the conversation.

Review: I found Caught in the Middle to be engaging, thoughtful, and very empathetic toward the Midwest’s struggles in a changing world. Longworth does a great job mixing in interviews with residents and leaders from small towns, which for me, were the best parts of the book. Their stories really bring the issues to life and add depth to the analysis. That said, I did feel like the book got a bit redundant at times, repeating some of the same points. Still, it’s a great read if you’re interested in how globalization affects everyday people, especially in regions like the Midwest that don't always get the spotlight.

[edh]

(Note: this review was written about three books thematically linked. See titles in content:)

Separately, these are all well-written and readable studies of Midwestern life. The authors have taken their time to interact and even live with their subjects, lending their portrayals of small-town folks touches of realism rather than resorting to caricature. Methland, naturally, deals with the methamphetamine epidemic in Oelwein, Iowa: one small town among many ravaged by the eponymous drug. The citizens of this small community are also struggling to find decent-paying jobs that will keep food on the table. Caught in the Middle: America’s Heartland in the Age of Globalism pulls back to focus on the region’s economic concerns, pointing at the entire midwestern region as a cross-section of the nation without a strong economic centerpoint and reasonable transportation/accessibility to unify business concerns. The argument is extended by pointing out that the lack of a spokesperson or solid regional identity also prevents the midwest from being a business or tourism powerhouse in any meaningful way. Finally, Hollowing Out the Middle takes small towns to task, chiding them for pouring the lion’s share of resources into the very youth who will move away and never return rather than focusing on the development and encouragement of the young people who stay behind.

On the surface, these books deal with issues that seem very disparate. How do drugs, lack of infrastructure and leadership, and youth cultivation tie together? They have much more to do with each other than you believe. The working class “stayer” youth of Hollowing out the Middle are easily the younger versions of the citizens of Methland, working two or more minimum wage jobs in order to stay afloat financially while relying on illegal drug use and dealings to stay alert and to bring in extra much-needed cash. The inability of people to move easily about the region, highlighted in Caught in the Middle, drastically affects the “achievers,” who leave their small towns in order to have access to the global culture, opportunities, and multiculturalism that they cannot find at home.

All of the authors champion these separate crises as major reasons for the death of the American small town and its culture. But considered together, these books are a call to action for a leader or group of leaders to step up and start making the changes that are needed to preserve the Midwest as a heartland that adapts effectively to the unique circumstances of the 21st century.

Methland resources:
NYT Sunday Book Review
The author’s Methland page

Caught in the Middle resources:
The author’s Caught in the Middle page
The Chicago Council coverage
Seattle Post-Intelligencer coverage
Chicago Tribune coverage
Blogger coverage

Hollowing Out the Middle resources:
Authors’ official page, with book trailer

Fun visualization tool from Forbes!
Try this interactive map – click on any county and see both out- and in-migration data. This is a perfect complement to Hollowing out the Middle.
- See more at: http://blogs.jocolibrary.org/staffpic...

[marcus miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you live in the Midwest or care about the future of the Midwest you should read this book. Though Longworth's analysis and predictions are rather depressing I found the book to be interesting and at times rather amusing. It seems obvious Longworth cares deeply about the Midwest and hopes for a positive future but at the same time he recognizes most Midwesterner's are content to either ignore the problems, or to blame their problems on others.

Longworth's description of the Midwestern mentality - complacency in the face of change, seems accurate though in the part of Iowa where I live,it is often accompanied by a certain fatalism. At times this is expressed in religious language in phrases such as, "it must be God's will." If it is indeed God's will there is obviously little we can do but long nostalgically for the good old days and bemoan the fact that our children are growing up and leaving for the coasts.
Longworth doesn't talk much about religion though he did have a line which also rings true. "In a world of the Next New Thing, devotion to biblical inerrancy and traditional values doesn't cut it. The global world is diverse, open, multinational, with no loyalty to place or places. The rural world is still white-on-white, local, fixed on itself as the homeland of all virtue."

I have contended that recent arguments in our area about the six-day creation and a 4,000 year old earth, reflect a subliminal fear, or acknowledgment that life is changing in ways we don't understand. At these points it becomes easy to latch onto something which seems foundational to our beliefs. If someone refuses to believe the way I do, then I can write them off, or if they represent the forces of globalization I can demonize them, especially if they refute my belief in a six day creation, or if I refuse to acknowledge the relevance of the issue.

Longworth offers several ideas for changing the Midwest, some of which will be controversial. Opening the doors to all immigrants is probably not going to play well in most Midwestern states or towns.

The idea of cities working together, the development of clusters centered around biotech, biofuels and other new industries may have promise, though Longworth doesn't have much hope. Longworth also critiques the politicians who have added to the mess he see's in the Midwest. He is especially hard on those who demonize immigrants, foster fear, and cut education and research budgets.

Globalization is here and it isn't going to reverse itself anytime soon even if gas goes to $5 a gallon or more. It will only hasten the decline of the small towns which still dot Iowa as people will no longer be willing to pay for the hour long commute to work or to buy groceries.

Is it entirely hopeless? I like to think there is hope. Midwesterners are resilient, know how to work hard, and many are still willing to sacrifice, if not for the good of their state or country, then for the good of their family. Solutions will emerge and people will adapt, much as many have done for the last hundred plus years. It may be ugly, it will certainly be messy, but the Midwest will survive in some form.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Small town politics, fierce independence and reliance the family farm.
They’re all part of what makes Midwesteners who they are, but it also might be what leaves them with one foot, if not both, in the grave, according to Richard C. Longworth’s “Caught in the Middle.”
The 2008 book reads like an obituary to the region that was once a manufacturing powerhouse and is now in the poorhouse because of globalization.
Manufacturing towns have seen their hometown companies leave for cheaper facilities in the Sunbelt, Mexico or Asia, leaving behind nothing but brownfields and unemployment. Longworth blames the labor unions that dominated these towns for creating a class of workers that relied on little more than a high school diploma to provide a comfortable living for life.
Now an uneducated and unmotivated workforce fills these rural slums. Without paychecks, these people cannot buy a drink at the local pub or buy from the corner grocer, causing the small towns that dot the Midwest to decay with little hope for a revival.
Farming is still alive, but the family farm is all but dead, Longworth writes. Instead, farmers have bought out their neighbors in order to plant vast tracts of corn or soybean or build football-field length sheds to house chickens and hogs that are then sold to large multinational corporations.
Not enough emphasis has been placed on re-educating the workforce or investing in the education of future generations, Longworth says. Few are banking on the economies of the 21st century, instead looking back to the days of yore and deciding that what they have now is good enough.
The region’s world-class universities, like the states and the cities themselves, are in constant competition with each other. Instead of worries about whether a company will invest in a headquarters in Indianapolis or Sao Paulo, the local townships are quibbling over which will get the next strip mall.
There’s a severe lack of foresight, and at times, an abundance of ignorance that has strangled the Midwest from jumping into the global game.
Longworth proposes that instead of an “every man for himself” attitude, the Midwest needs to think as a unit. Together it should market its Great Lakes as a tourist destination. Universities should break away from their states in order to attract the best and brightest, not just from the region but also abroad. The local governments should look less at how they differ and instead focus on shared problems to find mutually beneficial solutions.
In addition to education, which was absent in the workers of the last century, the Midwest’s future also relies on immigrants. Cheap Mexican workers are buoying small rural towns when they are the only ones who will work in dangerous meatpacking plants. Cities like Des Moines will need an influx of foreign Ph. Ds to innovate new technologies.
While Longworth’s argument seems like a postmortem on the region, it is just as much a challenge to once again pick itself up by its bootstraps and go back to the hard work that initially gave it its boom.

[Bri · Rating 2 out of 5]

I should probably disclose that I did not read this book by choice so much as I was STRONGLY ENCOURAGED to read it due to the fact my place of employment (a public library) was using it as part of a Community Read project. Otherwise, I probably would have glanced at it, shrugged, and then set it aside for something I actually wanted to read.

Perhaps if I were a journalist or if I wasn't still so bitter toward my Sociology degree, I might have enjoyed this book more. As it was, I spent far too much time getting angry at his simplistic analysis of historical events. Not that I should really be so critical due to the fact that Longworth is not, and does not claim to be, a historian. I very likely set out reading this book just looking for things to be critical about. (Like I said, I'm still WHOA bitter about that Sociology degree...and also that one really bad Journalism class I took in high school...) But then Longworth provided me with an early point of criticism in which he used the presence of the KKK in Southern Indiana as a factor in delineating Northern Indiana as part of the 'Midwest' and Southern Indiana as being too closely tied to the 'South'. Perhaps Longworth was not aware of the heavy historical presence of the KKK in and around Munice, IN (a city he uses as one of his focused examples in Chapter 4 of a post-industrial Midwestern town)...but it was just something that bothered me from the beginning of Chapter 2 and stuck with me the whole rest of the book. If he had missed something so well-known in local history, what else had he failed to discover in his research? What other facts may he have skimmed over to better suit his storytelling purposes?

Longworth may do a decent job of noting the key issues of globalization in the Midwest, but his proposed solutions seem to merely fall along the lines of convincing Midwesterners to change their minds and attitudes - something he readily admits Midwesterners are reluctant to do. He proposes that leaders step forward to win over the hearts and minds of the average Midwestern citizen, but he does not seem to provide meaningful suggestions for how those same leaders can do the winning. They simply must do it.

All-in-all, this isn't a horrible book. I just don't think it does what Longworth thinks it does.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a hugely insightful look at the socioeconomics of the Midwest and the way the region is mostly failing to cope with globalization.

As a Midwesterner, it's just a little depressing. I've seen the dynamics which Longworth describes playing out in a number of small towns and cities in which I've lived. During the 2008 Republican primary in Michigan, John McCain told a Michigan crowd that the manufacturing jobs they had lost were not coming back. He was roundly booed. On the same day, Mitt Romeny told a different crowd of unemployed auto workers that they would bring those jobs back to Michigan. (Cheers!) Of course, McCain was right, and Romeny was pandering.

These contrasting speeches illustrate what Longworth considers the major problem of the Midwest-an unwillingness to change and meet new realities. This is ironic, given the region's history. In the past, the Midwest was the engine of American economic and industrial expansion.

Longworth faults a creaky education system. He criticizes economic planners for trying to keep obsolescent factories in business, rather than developing new industries. He looks at the hypocrisy of immigration policy.

In an interview, he said that he originally set out to write about how immigration was having negative impacts on the economy. In the course of his research, he concluded that immigration, including illegal immigration, was one of the factors that kept many parts of the Midwestern economy viable. Longworth admits that influxes of migrants bring problems, but the hard argument he makes is, if businesses cannot avail themselves of cheap labor here they will move elsewhere (China, Indonesia, Alabama). It isn't that Americans won't do these jobs; it's that Americans won't do these jobs for low wages. With immigrants providing a labor pool, these business stay in the local tax base. The children of immigrants keep up the numbers in local schools, allowing them to stay open.

Longworth does cite some Midwestern success stories. Warsaw, Indiana, has turned itself into the orthopedics center of the United States. Chicago, Illinois, is a success as the capital of international commodities trading.

All in all, this was a highly readable book. It takes a difficult subject and makes it understandable.

[Allisonperkel · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Caught in the Middle" by Richard Longworth is a trenchant analysis of the Midwest in the age of globalisation. Throughout the book, Mr Longworth takes great pains to show how most of the midwest has not thrived and how the policies of the past are not the policies of the 21st century.

The line walked is very fine, and every corner, every sacred cow, gets its good and bad points exposed. From unions that brought us weekends and living wages to unions that resisted change and eventually cost jobs; to global commerce that builds up Chicago and Madison but crushes Detroit and Cleveland; to immigration saving towns that embrace it and killing towns that do not. Nothing escapes scrutiny.

At the end of the day, Mr Longworth keeps coming back to a similar theme; the boot strap, by yourself, anti education, anti immigration, it worked in the past it will work in the future attitude is killing large portions of the midwest. Again and again he shows how the policies of the past; depending on companies supporting towns, tax breaks for manufacturing, anti education and anti immigration and an inability to work together; are not the policies that will lead this region to the promised land.

He does offer a few ideas that could help the region. The biggest is simply getting the region to work as one area. This will not be easy, but if they can stop competing with each other and instead compete with the world, they would all benefit. Additionally he shows how immigration; both white collar and blue collar, does save the region. Finally he talks about how the region is wasting its huge university system and how the anti education/anti science policies are driving their best and brightest to the coasts. Addressing these problems may not completely turn the region around, but they would be a huge step in the right direction.

There is a lot of pride in the midwest present throughout this book. Mr Longworth is from there and he loves his home. This is his wakeup call; there is nothing new is this book however its one of the first times it has been presented so completely and so well. A highly enjoyable read.

[Tami Coleman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since moving to the midwest five years ago, it's struck me how much whining goes on about its lost glories, both locally and regionally. People here are just OBSESSED with this subject. So I was curious about joining a local discussion about this book sponsored by our United Way.

The book covers the same ground that every other op-ed, report, or analysis one encounters on the subject of how and why the rustbelt is not having a very good 21st century. This author, however, is a bit more critical of what the upper midwest is doing wrong than most commentators - a welcome relief to this outsider. But he too often simply falls back on much-repeated conclusions or 'accepted wisdom' without taking a fresh look at the very real problems he presents. I particularly thought his emphasis on globalization as some sort of new, slightly menacing force was totally off the mark. And his solution to the midwest's malaise? Get outsiders to move here and wait for the older people to die off. Didn't see that coming. Other problems with the book include somewhat lazy research, way too much repetition, and sloppy editing.

This book, on the other hand, would be a good sweeping overview of many of the problems with the upper midwest for someone wanting to get to know the region. His criticism is not scathing, but still desperately needed in this place of shrill boosterism and lockstep conformity. As one of the social service agency people at our discussion confessed, "If I were to publicly say some of the things Longworth says in this book, I'd be crucified." Caught in the Middle certainly is needed to move this important discussion along.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an Indiana native, and Midwesterner for life, the history in this book was FASCINATING...especially since I've lived in 3 of the towns used as case studies (Anderson, Warsaw, Muncie). I completely agree with most of Longworth's assertions: the Midwest DOES value a strong back over book learning, we DO love the "good old days," we DO vote values, our factory cities ARE rundown and ugly, our jobs are NOT coming back, we DO need to reinvent ourselves, progress HAS been hampered by clinging to our industrial roots, we DO play it safe, we ARE blind to the global revolution, and we are NOT as socially diverse as the coasts.

Longworth's insights into illegal immigration as it relates to corporations, Midwestern history, and the new global economy are brilliant, and the understanding of these concepts should be mainstreamed into public schools. His historical accounts of our economy are enlightening and helpful and educational, but as his opinions grow bolder and more acrid in later chapters, he vears confusingly all over the board with angry circular reasoning. The rollercoaster of high-fives and backhands, hope and despair, respect and scorn are dizzying at times; and the girthy pedestal Longworth presents to a close-minded minority is troubling. The two-page epilogue finally highlighting a few of our virtues comes across as a pitiful peace offering for the caustic and politically-laced lashings the Midwest endures from the courageous keystrokes of this smug former Iowan.

Despite the rough ride, I'm glad I picked up this book and plowed through the wet blanket of negativity for its intensely constructive nuggets of enlightenment and knowledge.

[Colette! · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow. This book explained so much. There were parts that I didn't quite agree with (I found his views on immigrant communities to be a little laced with scare tactics, but what do I know, I'm just a goddamn hippie) but his explanation at how the Midwest has gone from a cultural and economic powerhouse to the sad sack of stubborn stasis that it is was damn near shocking for me, whose premise for entering graduate school pretty much is the thesis of this book. Why has the Midwest gone from hero to zero? : because we used to be a bunch of plucky immigrants willing to take a chance and see some change, and now we're a bunch of nativists who don't want immigrants because we're afraid of change and "like things the way they are", even though both are necessary for a thriving community.

I could continue to rhapsodize, but am going to point out that his chapter on education, specifically higher education, is dead on. The way the system works now is interesting in that it doesn't. Read it for yourself, because his vision for what needs to happen is so logical it'll never happen.

I would have given this four stars ("really liked it") but I can't in good faith "really like" a book that describes why the culture I grew up in and love is crumbling.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Caught in the Middle is a good overview of the changing tides of a segment of the nation, the Midwest. Some from the region may challenge Richard Longworth's regional definition of the Midwest, leaving out the Plains States, such as Nebraska and Kansas. But that doesn't shake his overall argument the region could succeed in the global era if it acted more like a unified entity than competing across state lines and remaining politically disjointed across the rural-urban divide. Longworth's basic arguments should be put reexamined now, 7-8 years after he wrote this and Midwest has had to face the Great Recession. How much of what he prescribed was enacted in that overhaul, how much has yet to be tapped, what successes were born of recommendations left out of his summation?

Overall, Caught in the Middle gives an introductory look at a key region of the US. He doesn't hide his politics well and relies on anecdotes and observation rather than hard studies. Further, Longworth doesn't make a great comparative case establishing how the Midwest is different any other part of the US or world in how it should confront globalization.

It's a quick read and not having a strong background in this topic, I found it useful.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, valuable consideration of the American midwest as an economic unit. Longworth considers geography, natural resources, urban/rural mix and development, evolution of technology, personality characteristics of important immigrant and ethnic groups as a mix of factors which led to the midwest's devlopment as an economic powerhouse during the 20th century and its decline going into the 21st.

Unfortunately, Lomgworth describes only in passing the negative effect of unionization in the region's decline and ignores the parasitic nature of government in gradually transfering vitality away from the successes of the private sector.

His search for how the region might regain economic success is an uninteresting stroll through the "government will lead the way" - Brookings Institution pablum.

Worth the read to learn how the midwest became an economic powerhouse; but there are few answers for the future to be found here.

[Jeff Rosendahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not normally the kind of book I read, but interesting. I felt at times like the author could have used a good editor to go over it one more time before publishing because I felt that the conclusions were at the beginning of the book, and I didn't like the solutions to the problems all jammed into the last chapter. For me, I'd have preferred to read the solutions in the chapter detailing the problems. I also took issue with some of the authors premises at the beginning. But aside from those criticisms, learned a lot about how the Midwest is failing in today's economy. And even though I love the little town I live in, every day we see more indications that we are in danger of falling off the map. It can be a seriously scary book for those of us who live in the Midwest, and I hope some of our leaders take the time to read it and, more importantly, think about what they can do to help the economies and children of the Midwestern states.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book isn't revolutionary. It probably won't change the way you think, but it does make it's case well, pointing to useful examples and statistics. (Though it could probably be half the size. Longworth repeats himself a lot.) While reading the book, the foibles of city and state governments certainly became much more noticeable. I thought about the fight over CME and Sears in terms of this book, and it makes his argument all the more understandable.

The nice thing about this book is, if you're not planning on reading it cover to cover, it lends itself well to individual chapter reading. The chapters focus on technology, mega-farmers, the decline of small towns, immigrants, global cities, education and the politics. I found the agriculture chapter particularly interesting, especially as I don't have an ag background.

[Mercedes Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone in the Midwest should read this and have lively conversations about it.

[Greg Majewski · Rating 2 out of 5]

Full disclosure: I read this book, then had Longworth as a guest lecturer in one of my master's classes, then saw him again as the keynote speaker at a professional conference I attended. Each time I liked his opinions less and less. This book offers an interesting history of the Midwest that I won't argue is inaccurate. However, it basically becomes an airing of grievances of what we're all doing wrong after that. Having lived in the Midwest for basically my entire adult life, I felt affornted and offended more than enlightened by this writing. There is almost no constructive criticism and no hope offered for the future of this region, which I feel is pretty unfair. At least Longworth has it together better than Richard Florida.

[Nathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A quick and focused read, but not one that I felt good reading. Longworth's object is to document the effects of globalism on the North American Midwest and, ostensibly, to allay the fears of those whose livelihoods and cultures are being transformed by the massive concentration and consolidation of economies brought on by it. In so doing, however, he offers an unsympathetic ultimatum: adjust or be left behind. That's not a helpful, constructive or particularly nuanced view of the situation, and I disliked him for it. This is economics with no soul, that views our innovate-or-die culture as a benign, even necessary phenomenon. A book sorely lacking the human element.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Insightful and accessible analysis of malaise in the Midwest, with some policy recommendations thrown in, perhaps to lighten the otherwise overwhelmingly negative assessment of the current situation, culture and economic prospects of the region. Especially given the negative tone, the editor could have eliminated some needless repetition of the author's main points -- in this context the repetition produces a scolding/ranting tone which isn't really necessary -- the situation is depressing enough already (at least as depicted in this book).

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book which only makes it more obvious that as teachers we must convey the need to graduate from high school as well as pursue a college degree. We as a society need to be more innovative in creating new opportunities for industries with jobs that can not be outsourced. Jonathan Friedman's The World is Flat addresses these same issues but his book is not confined to "the heartland" but rather the whole United States.

[Joyce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although a few years old, this book still provides a very accurate look at the situation in the Midwest. It especially foresees the denigration of education that continues. The author offers some interesting ideas about what should happen to our university system. He also talks quite a bit about the ineffectiveness of our current political system. Definitely worth reading, especially if you live in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota or Missouri.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book Richard Longworth explores America's Midwest and how globalization is affecting it. He looks at how our history and culture have brought us to where we are today. It is often a harsh exploration of the problems and our responses. Yet, he does not leave us without hope for the future. He explores some places in the Midwest that are doing well, and offers suggestions to bring about a brighter future for the region as a whole.

[Linda Stoner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Longworth expands and contracts Friedman's "The World Is Flat" discussion to the Midwest. His definition of the Midwest, by the way is Ohio west through Iowa and from Minnesota south through the northern portion of Missiour. Only KC and Lawrence in Kansas make it into the discussion. He offered some very provocative thoughts that were new to me.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some interesting stuff in here, particularly the chapters about how agriculture works now. But there are just way too many Friedman-esque generalizations and platitudes (with a dash of Richard Florida thrown in) to take this seriously.

But, then, according to Longworth's definition of the Midwest, I'm a native Southerner, so what do I know?

[Deborah Treon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good analysis of the decline of manufacturing in the Midwest, and the economy built on it. Not a tough read...not sure I read anything that was surprising or more insightful than news articles, etc. Still, living here, it seems more "real" to me than, say, it would a CA surfer dude. (Nothing against California or surfing or dudes!).

[Jamiko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Longworth provides great insight into the impact of globalization on the Midwest and how as a region we should respond. A must read for anyone concerned about the future development of the Midwest and the country.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is easy to read and is, as far as cultural analysis goes, dead on accurate in laying out the decline of the midwest in the face of globalization. Longworth makes the mistake of offering solutions to this crisis, but his diagnosis is still worth reading.

[Anna Tarkov · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned a great deal from this book and strongly urge all Midwesterners to read it. The social, political and economic ramifications of all this are immense so please allow yourself to be informed by someone who is not a cable news host, elected official, etc.