What I Read This Weekend

Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World, by Tim Marshall

“Geography is the stage on which the drama of human history is played — but the stage has a trapdoor, a roof that leaks, and places where the lighting is poor.” — Tim Marshall

History is often told as the story of ideologies, economics, revolutions, religions, and leaders. But beneath those forces lies something more enduring, and far less malleable: the very land itself.

In Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World, Mr. Tim Marshall argues that the decisions of nations are shaped less by ambition than by terrain. Using vivid examples from ten distinct regions, he illustrates how geography imposes enduring constraints on statecraft. Russia’s flat western plains offer little defense against invasion, shaping centuries of strategic anxiety. China, despite its vast territory, remains dependent on access to open seas, influencing its assertive maritime policies. Africa’s rivers and natural barriers hinder internal trade and unity, while Latin America’s mountainous spine and dense jungles create isolation, limiting economic integration. The Arctic emerges as a newly contested frontier precisely because climate change has made its resources accessible.

Yet while Mr. Marshall’s title promises to explain “everything,” geography alone cannot fully account for the complexity of global affairs. Nations reflect a tapestry of intertwined forces: culture, interests, ambitions, and the choices of their people. Still, geography profoundly shapes economics, security, and diplomacy. In an age of shifting power and fraying narratives, it offers not just perspective, but orientation. And that is a perspective worth keeping close.

Marshall, Tim. Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World. New York: Scribner, 2015.