A Liberal World Order in Crisis: Choosing between Imposition and Restraint

George Sorensen is a frienc of liberalism and of liberals, but a moderate, critical, and often sceptical one. . . . [His] volume offers perhaps the most lucid view of international order, as well as of the crisis of liberal internationalism, since Stanley Hoffmann's article on 'The Crisis of Liberal Internationalism' in Foreign Policy (1995) and since Andrew Hurrell's On Global Order (2006), which centred on the tension between solidarism and pluralism and has much in common with Sorensen's own theme. -Pierre Hassner, Survival (Volume 54, Issue 5, 2012)

In this thoughtful, erudite book, Sorensen portrays the current challenges facing the US-dominated liberal world order. . . . Sorensen's argument is most persuasive when he vividly shows the policy dilemmas encountered by liberal democracies in dealing with weak or failed states, in fostering world trade, and in working through international institutions. . . . Sorensen deserves readers' gratitude for sharply pointing to the dilemmas faced by liberal democracy and the effects on international affairs. Summing Up: Recommended. -R. M. Paddags, CHOICE (June 2012)

A Liberal World Order in Crisis is a terrifically clearheaded and well-written book; it is capacious and will lend itself well to teaching. -Peter J. Katzenstein, Walter S. Carpenter, Jr., Professor of International Studies, Cornell University, coeditor of Anti-Americanisms in World Politics

A Liberal World Order in Crisis points directly at the problems and contradictions of the liberal world order that has emerged since the end of the Cold War, from its approach to failed states to the question of the universality of its underlying values. Georg Sorensen is one of the keenest contemporary observers of global politics, and his book is a sober assessment of contemporary prospects for world order. -Francis Fukuyama, Olivier Nomellini Senior Fellow, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University

Georg Sorensen elegantly exposes the insurmountable tensions confronting a liberal vision of world order. His analysis is as wise as it is sobering-and represents a major contribution to debate about international politics in the twenty-first century. -Charles A. Kupchan, Georgetown University and Council on Foreign Relations, author of How Enemies Become Friends

A Liberal World Order in Crisis analyzes the internal tensions of liberalism in world politics-it is concise, sharp, balanced, and indeed critical. This makes it a masterpiece of liberal thinking. -Michael Zurn, Social Science Research Center Berlin (WZB)