Frenemy Nations: Love and Hate Between Neighbo(u)Ring States

How can neighbours that are side by side geographically be so far apart politically, culturally, ideologically, and economically?

In the summer of 1968, Mary Soderstrom and her husband loaded up their VW Beetle and immigrated to Canada from the United States. The contrast between their new home and their old led to a long-running reflection on what makes the two countries different. How could two places that are similar in so many ways be so disparate in others?

In Frenemy Nations, Soderstrom answers this question by addressing a range of geographical "odd couples" including the United States and Canada; New Hampshire and Vermont; Alberta and Saskatchewan; Haiti and the Dominican Republic; Scotland and Ireland; Rwanda and Burundi; and more. Through it all, Soderstrom shows how tiny differences--in geographic features, colonial histories, resource competition, education, women's roles, language, and migration--can have outsized effects on how polities develop.

Author: Mary Soderstrom
Publisher: University of Regina Press
Published: 10/26/2019
Pages: 276
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.90lbs
Size: 8.90h x 6.00w x 0.70d
ISBN: 9780889776722

Review Citation(s):
Foreword 10/26/2019

About the Author
Mary Soderstrom is author of numerous books, including Road Through Time: The Story of Humanity on the Move and Desire Lines: Stories of Love and Geography. She lives in Montréal.