McMafia; A Journey Through the Global Criminal Underworld

New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2008. First United States Edition. Hardcover. Good/Good. Glued binding. Paper over boards. xvi, 375, [7] pages. Illustrations. A note on Sources. Index. Inscription signed by author on half title. Minor damp staining of covers at bottom of spine of book and on DJ. From Wikipedia: "Misha Glenny (born 1958) is a British journalist who specializes in southeastern Europe, global organized crime, and cybersecurity. He was Central Europe correspondent for The Guardian and later the BBC. He specialized in reporting on the Yugoslav wars in the early 1990s that followed the breakup of Yugoslavia. While at the BBC, Glenny won 1993's Sony Gold Award for his 'outstanding contribution to broadcasting'. He has also written three books about Central and Eastern Europe. In McMafia (2008), he wrote that international organized crime could account for 15 per cent of the world's GDP. Since January 2012, Misha has been visiting professor at Columbia University s Harriman Institute, teaching a course on "crime in transition". Derived from a Kirkus review: Today's international crime syndicates are more powerful than ever, and likely to become more so. So warns Glenny, formerly a BBC correspondent in Central Europe. That region's particular brand of organized crime is spreading around the world, he demonstrates in persuasive detail. Glenny describes a slew of countries stretching from Bulgaria to Brazil and Nigeria in which the shadow economy of protection, kidnapping, gambling and smuggling threatens to overtake legitimate business-if it hasn't already done so. Based on the author's skillful investigative journalism, this survey of international wrongdoing makes for fantastic reading that surprises on more than one occasion: Who knew that western Canada had more organized criminal syndicates per capita than any other nation? In this world, gangsters and politicians, criminals and law-abiding citizens are rarely far apart. In his view, globally organized crime is a worldwide crisis linked to and nearly eclipsing terrorism as a threat. A bracing, frightening ride through a dark world experiencing "a vigorous springtime.".