Men at War

Enough reviews lauding the author and this book have been written, and all of them well-deserved. But since it becomes available in paperback this June (2006), this review hopes to spark a wider discussion of how it might be used in the classroom. The summary is well known. Prompted by anti-globalization protests on her Georgetown campus, an economics professor travels the world to discover the life of a t-shirt, from... Read Full Review

Spurred by a Georgetown student anti-sweatshop protest, Pietra Rivoli took up the task of tracing the life of a (tacky souvenir) t-shirt she buys in Florida, to examine the economics and politics of this non-trivial segment of the apparel industry. Why she buys the t-shirt in the first place remains a mystery. Why she needs one from Florida that she will likely discard is even more of a mystery. She made me think about studying... Read Full Review

All of us have an opinion on globalization. We either fall into the protectionist or free trade camp or perhaps somewhere between but few of us have a clear concept of the mechanics of globalization. Alan Tonselson’s book "The Race to the Bottom" tried explaining it using wry statistical economic analysis but Rivoli breathes life into globalization by fleshing out the people involved in the life cycle of an ordinary T-shirt... Read Full Review

An entertaining and insightful read on how the global economy really works for people. the author tackles the serious issues about globalization by exploring the life of her t-shirt, but she also is a great writer who can take the complex and make it both understanding and entertaining. bravo!

I'm from the apparel industry - not fiber, yarn, textile or retail which in the US are separate industries - but apparel, the cutting and sewing and shipping of clothing. Ironically, a week before reading this book, I was given a passionate and amazing talk by an executive from one of the non-apparel companies profiled in this book. When he was done, I told him his business plan, which he detailed, could not have been written... Read Full Review