I find Thomas Friedman very engaging and rely on his research and opinion very often when making a point in an argument.

Nửa đầu sách hoàn toàn không để lại ấn tượng.

Tác giả chỉ nêu lại những thứ rất-quen-thuộc trong thời đại mình: chuỗi cung, mạng máy tính, UPS, outsourcing, insourcing, e-commerce... (đúng tinh thần "Tóm lược Lịch sử Thế giới TK XXI" - nhiều quá không nhớ nỗi ^^!).
Người đọc thì chán còn tác giả thì kể như "OMG! I have never seen anything like it before. It's a miracle!" =.=

Những phần còn lại rất hay, bớt cường điệu hơn, đa phần về nước Trung Quờ như cạnh tranh, tài nguyên, chiến tranh, chuỗi cung ứng. Mà đúng thiệt vậy, bởi thật sự anh thứ CS là tâm điểm, trigger của rất nhiều vấn đề hiện tại trên thế giới. Đặc biệt thích đoạn tác giả miêu tả mối quan hệ TQ và Mỹ: Ban đầu tôi sợ sói, sau này tôi khiêu vũ cùng sói và ngay bây giờ tôi muốn trở thành sói.

12 năm sau ngày sách ra mắt, dù kỷ nguyên số đang diễn ra cực mạnh, công cụ hôm nay sẽ lỗi thời vào ngày mai nhưng Thế Giới Phẳng dường như không quá cũ. Những vấn nạn toàn cầu hóa gây ra vẫn còn rất nóng, đặc biệt vấn đề Trung Đông, môi trường.

Nói chung là thỏa mãn.

Globalization has made the world a smaller place, where Americans are not only competing with each other but also with those graduating in India, China, Brazil, Russia, and the rest of the world. The Internet has changed things to real-time, disseminating information more quickly than has ever been done in human history, and so up-to-date information is a critical source of competitive advantage.

A strong argument in favor of globalization. As Friedman points out in a later chapter, the question is not whether or not we should globalize, it is how we should globalize. The "flattening of the world" that he mentions again and again refers to the recent ease of which people, companies, and nations can collaborate with those on the other side of the planet. Friedman believes this change has had and will continue to have a huge impact on the world, akin to the industrial revolution. Yes, many people will get hurt. Some jobs will become obsolete and others will get shipped off to places where they can get done cheaper and faster. But there will be new jobs as well, he argues, for those who can quickly adapt to this new "flat world."

The book is very long. My only complaints are that he overuses the "world is flat" metaphor (like he was trying to force it those words into mainstream language) and that sometimes he uses too many similar anecdotes to get his point across. Overall it was a great, thought-provoking read.

I fucking hate Thomas Friedman with every fiber of my being.

Friedman discusses the role of globalization and how the digitization of knowledge has flattened the world. He points out that outsourcing is not the root of all evil and that we need to step up our game to participate in the global market.

Why I picked it up: It was on the Army's Recommended reading list for 2011. Best of all it was an audiobook.

Why I finished it: Engaging, intelligent, humorous and hopeful this is an inspiring look at globalization and it's consequences. I will definitely be reading (or listening) to Friedman's other books.

This book should be required reading for everyone. Friedman's political leaning is obvious (which may be off-putting to some), but his many flat-world examples are impossible to ignore. At the very least, people should be discussing the educational changes needed to help us all compete.

The flat piece of work was further flattened by the fact that Thomas Friedman thinks to think that his readers' brains are as flat as his metaphor. It's not a particularly complicated concept, but Friedman seems to feel the need to drive it home at least once on every single page. Methinks that the only thing Friedman loves more than his own intellect (any maybe his moustache) is his flat metaphor.

Flatty flatty flat flat flatness flatocity flaticity....

P.S. Flat.

For people who want to be up to date with the globalization and constant change that our world is undergoing currently, then look no further than this book. Many countries, such as China and India, who were once not in the same playing field as America in terms of economy and prosperity, are now beginning to rise to the top. This book discusses how this has been achieved and what to expect in the future.(75) In America outsourcing has become a major tactic for many businesses, especially with the big names like Microsoft, Dell, IBM, and WalMart. One of the most fascinating things I have read in this book was when Thomas Friedman describes the customer service buildings in India. A man having trouble with his computer during the day in America is connected to a man or women in India that is working at night. The incredible thing is that these people make up names that correlate to the region they are helping to make the customer feel more at home. This is a must read for those who want to stay in touch with current events and to those who want to learn about a truly unique time in world history.

I think this book represents what is wrong with a generation of baby boomers. Aside from being verbose and arrogant, it presents obvious observations as a favor to the reader, as if the reader is nowhere near as enlightened as Thomas Friedman is. In the process, he manages to name-drop, and attempts to convince us all the world is better by outsourcing. Every turn of the page made my blood boil to a higher temperature, so after nearly 200 pages, I handed it to Tony and instructed him to sell it. I have better things to do with my time.

Started this book over a year ago and just finished it today. How many times does Friedman have to say "the world is flat" for us to get it? I've never read a book with so many anecdotal and innocuous stories just to prove that the title is far from misnomer.

Most of the content in this book just seemed like common sense after reviewing modern econ theories and histories. This resulted in skimming about 1/4 of the book, mainly the stories that repeatedly resulted in "Hey guess what, here is yet more proof that the world is flat"

I can't bash the whole book though.

While the story of globalization presented by Friedman is about 300 pages too long, it does contain some great advice on how America can change its policies to better enhance innovation among its future workforce. Information about the perfect storm facing the American workforce was intriguing and alarming. Stories of how less developed countries can harness our new world were encouraging.

Great for someone unfamiliar with modern economic theories and initially bitter to globalization. If you've read anything on modern global trends and economic principles released in the last 3 years, this book is not worth the price tag. Also, if you are familiar with "The internets" you probably have already figured out most of what Friedman is talking about.

I'm sure the stories presented in this book were revolutionary a few years ago... but apparently in a flat world books about globalization go out of date rather quickly.

I would have given this at least 4 stars if it had been edited to a reasonable length, with less repetition. Despite what many of the reviewers suggested, it wasn't a fully one-sided account of free trade. Though Friedman's position was mostly pro-free-trade (almost all economists are pro), he did discuss problems and inequalities that arise and acknowledged the complexities of free trade. The book was also pretty thorough discussing not just government policy, but also technology, education, cultural attitudes, and even terrorism. I'd recommend it but only if you're prepared to do the hard hard work of slogging through.