The Almost Nearly Perfect People: Behind the Myth of the Scandinavian Utopia
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- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Michael Booth
- ISBN：0099546078
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Summary
Journalist Michael Booth has lived among the Scandinavians for more than ten years and has grown increasingly frustrated with the rose-tinted view of this part of the world offered up by the Western media。 In this timely book， he leaves his adopted home of Denmark and embarks on a journey through all five of the Nordic countries to discover who these curious tribes are， the secrets of their success， and， most intriguing of all， what they think of one another。
Why are the Danes so happy despite having the highest taxes？ Do the Finns really have the best education system？ Are the Icelanders as feral as they sometimes appear？ How are the Norwegians spending their fantastic oil wealth？ And why do all of them hate the Swedes？ In The Almost Nearly Perfect People， Booth explains who the Scandinavians are， how they differ and why， and what their quirks and foibles are， and he explores why these societies have become so successful and models for the world。 Along the way， a more nuanced， often darker picture emerges of a region plagued by taboos， characterized by suffocating parochialism， and populated by extremists of various shades。
Why are the Danes so happy despite having the highest taxes？ Do the Finns really have the best education system？ Are the Icelanders as feral as they sometimes appear？ How are the Norwegians spending their fantastic oil wealth？ And why do all of them hate the Swedes？ In The Almost Nearly Perfect People， Booth explains who the Scandinavians are， how they differ and why， and what their quirks and foibles are， and he explores why these societies have become so successful and models for the world。 Along the way， a more nuanced， often darker picture emerges of a region plagued by taboos， characterized by suffocating parochialism， and populated by extremists of various shades。
Reviews
Thor
，
A fun dissection of the Nordic countries， going over history， culture， economies， national identities etc。 Denmark takes the front seat in the discussion， as Booth is a British immigrant in Denmark。 But each country gets its own share， and similarities and differences are pointed out all the time。 Mostly well-researched with plenty of interviews， but sometimes one-sided and biased: the experiences and theories of the writer seep through everywhere， binding the book together。 One example: judging A fun dissection of the Nordic countries， going over history， culture， economies， national identities etc。 Denmark takes the front seat in the discussion， as Booth is a British immigrant in Denmark。 But each country gets its own share， and similarities and differences are pointed out all the time。 Mostly well-researched with plenty of interviews， but sometimes one-sided and biased: the experiences and theories of the writer seep through everywhere， binding the book together。 One example: judging of the Finnish sauna as a "silent moment" from single experience。 I've actually found saunas to be quite talkative， from many experiences！ Then again， the exaggerated humor in these personal stories is what makes this book light and fun to read。I enjoyed learning about the Jantelagen， Danish hygge， the Icelandic crisis， Sweden's social-democratic bastion that had to reinvent itself， and much more！ 。。。more
Leo
，
Review in English below。Reseña en español:Tendemos a ver los escandinavos como un todo， como si fueran todos iguales。 Para empezar， técnicamente los finlandeses y los islandeses no son escandinavos porque el termino se refiere a los habitantes de las tierras vikingas originales （Dinamarca， Suecia y Noruega）， para hablar de los cinco habría que hablar de nórdicos。 Menudo lio。Este libro es una muy buena introducción a este grupo de países nórdicos， el autor mezcla sus propias experiencias （viviend Review in English below。Reseña en español:Tendemos a ver los escandinavos como un todo， como si fueran todos iguales。 Para empezar， técnicamente los finlandeses y los islandeses no son escandinavos porque el termino se refiere a los habitantes de las tierras vikingas originales （Dinamarca， Suecia y Noruega）， para hablar de los cinco habría que hablar de nórdicos。 Menudo lio。Este libro es una muy buena introducción a este grupo de países nórdicos， el autor mezcla sus propias experiencias （viviendo en Dinamarca y visitando los otros países） con estudios y conversaciones diversas con gente local y expertos varios。 La lectura es muy amena， ya que se trata de capítulos no muy densos， aderezados con el típico humor inglés de tomárselo todo muy poco en serio。 Y además sirve para ver en realidad con son esos países， en vez de esa idea que tenemos en parte de Europa de que son unos países excepcionales y estupendos。 Y como siempre， hay de todo y no es oro todo lo que reluce。Como libro de divulgación general en un gran candidato para aquellos que queremos tener una idea básica de cada país nórdico。 Sin duda， me deja con ganas de leer mas a fondo sobre ciertos temas， así que buscaré algún libro más especializado。 Review in English:We tend to look at the Scandinavian people as a whole when in reality， the Finnish and Icelandic can't really be considered Scandinavian since the term refers to the original Viking lands。 We should refer to them as Nordic。So this book is a great introduction to this group of Nordic countries: Michael Booth shares his own personal experiences （he lives in Denmark and has travelled to the other countries） along with several studies and conversations with fields experts and so on。 The book is very easy to read， chapters aren't dense at all and Booth add his British humor along the way。 It's a way for learn the reality of these countries instead of believing the same old clichés about them being the bees knees。I think this is a great book to get a general idea of each of the Nordic countries and if you want to， continue looking for more detailed information somewhere else。 I certainly will。 。。。more
Franca
，
An enjoyable read and a good introduction to the similarities and differences found among the nordic peoples。 It leaves a positive feeling towards the region。
pati_zyszek
，
Jest mi ogromnie przykro， ale jest to mój kolejny DNF😓 Pomysł na książkę jest bardzo dobry i każdej osobie， która chociaż trochę zna się na Skandynawii ta książka się spodoba。 Mi natomiast ciężko się ją czytało， bo styl pisania był bardzo ciężki i naukowy。 W samym tekście zawarte było mnóstwo informacji， tak， że w pewnym sensie nie wiedziałam o czym czytam。 Zaczęłam czytać drugi rozdział o Danii。。。 i już nie dokończyłam。 Było tam bardzo dużo informacji historycznych， a więc również dat， nazwisk Jest mi ogromnie przykro， ale jest to mój kolejny DNF😓 Pomysł na książkę jest bardzo dobry i każdej osobie， która chociaż trochę zna się na Skandynawii ta książka się spodoba。 Mi natomiast ciężko się ją czytało， bo styl pisania był bardzo ciężki i naukowy。 W samym tekście zawarte było mnóstwo informacji， tak， że w pewnym sensie nie wiedziałam o czym czytam。 Zaczęłam czytać drugi rozdział o Danii。。。 i już nie dokończyłam。 Było tam bardzo dużo informacji historycznych， a więc również dat， nazwisk i miejsc。 Generalnie polecam， ale osobom， którym nie przeszkadza trudny， naukowy język i takim， które są w stanie przyswoić dużo informacji w krótkim czasie。 。。。more
applekern
，
It took me nearly a month to work through this book， not necessarily because of its length or information-density。 Sometimes life just gets in the way。If you‘re looking for a book to analyse the nordic cultures in a rational and sophisticated way， this is not the book for you。 The Almost Nearly Perfect People is a travel diary meets ‚expert‘ interviews， spiced up with some （occasionally biased and cliche） jokes by a british author。 Nonetheless， I wish I would have read this book before living in It took me nearly a month to work through this book， not necessarily because of its length or information-density。 Sometimes life just gets in the way。If you‘re looking for a book to analyse the nordic cultures in a rational and sophisticated way， this is not the book for you。 The Almost Nearly Perfect People is a travel diary meets ‚expert‘ interviews， spiced up with some （occasionally biased and cliche） jokes by a british author。 Nonetheless， I wish I would have read this book before living in Finland for a semester， as it does give a cohesive overview over what makes scandinavia scandinavia and how perfectly imperfect they are。 Probably a 4。5 because I‘m deeply biased。 。。。more
Jessie Scott
，
Michael Booth travels through the Nordic countries investigating what it is that makes them all such overachievers in wealth， standards of living， education and happiness。 Immensely enjoyable to read， packed with facts and written by someone with an outstanding sense of humour （example: describing Viking king Cnut as “that great spell-checker booby trap”）。
Mayda （My Book Cafe Life）
，
This was an enjoyable read。 It was informational and you get a sense from the authors point of view of what it’s like living in one of these nations。 Both pros and cons。 Booth and his family live in Denmark。 The book doesn’t read like a history book nor is academically inclined。 It reads as someone’s blog or short travel articles with a sarcasm sense of humor。 Which is what makes it easy to enjoy， I suppose。 What I did found odd and almost made me dnf， was the fact there’s a negative connotation This was an enjoyable read。 It was informational and you get a sense from the authors point of view of what it’s like living in one of these nations。 Both pros and cons。 Booth and his family live in Denmark。 The book doesn’t read like a history book nor is academically inclined。 It reads as someone’s blog or short travel articles with a sarcasm sense of humor。 Which is what makes it easy to enjoy， I suppose。 What I did found odd and almost made me dnf， was the fact there’s a negative connotation from the start of the book。 There is this sense of negativity coming from the author which may sway you。 But since I was interested in the content， I kept an open mind while reminding myself that this book is coming from an English man’s point of view and not that of a native。 So， if you are going to read this， keep an open mind and remember that this is not a native point of view。 Other than that， it was fun。 。。。more
Ben Andrus
，
This book is a a bit of an exploration of Nordic cultures， politics， and personalities。 Overall， I enjoyed it。 There were moments when I laughed out loud as Michael Booth shares the same ironic tone as Bill Bryson。 An Almost perfect People is not as much a travel memoir as Bryson's books， however。Somewhat more off-putting is Booth's need to inject his political opinions without considering some of the realities that the Nordic countries face， or in some cases ignoring those realities altogether。 This book is a a bit of an exploration of Nordic cultures， politics， and personalities。 Overall， I enjoyed it。 There were moments when I laughed out loud as Michael Booth shares the same ironic tone as Bill Bryson。 An Almost perfect People is not as much a travel memoir as Bryson's books， however。Somewhat more off-putting is Booth's need to inject his political opinions without considering some of the realities that the Nordic countries face， or in some cases ignoring those realities altogether。 。。。more
Rachel Stevenson
，
If the author name on the front of this book was Bill Bryson rather than Michael Booth， I wouldn't have been surprised。 Having done the UK， the US， Western Europe， and Australia， it’d make sense for Billy B to set his sights on Scandinavia。 Booth has the same irreverence， the same wit， and the same amusing turn of phrase: “I find Scandinavians， even the Norwegians， utterly fascinating，” or “Icelanders are essentially feral，” and Swedes are described as trustworthy because “they simply don't have If the author name on the front of this book was Bill Bryson rather than Michael Booth， I wouldn't have been surprised。 Having done the UK， the US， Western Europe， and Australia， it’d make sense for Billy B to set his sights on Scandinavia。 Booth has the same irreverence， the same wit， and the same amusing turn of phrase: “I find Scandinavians， even the Norwegians， utterly fascinating，” or “Icelanders are essentially feral，” and Swedes are described as trustworthy because “they simply don't have the imagination to lie or cheat。" Finally， “Most prehistoric Scandianvians spent their lives trudging， alone， across windswept heaths before accidentally falling into peat bogs and dying”。Covering the three Scandinavian countries and two Nordic （Iceland， Finland）， Booth explores the society and history with nary a Faroese jumper or gruesome murder in sight。 He reminds us that the Danes once ruled Yorkshire and it seems that their influence rubbed off on the Anglo-Saxons/Celts of the time。 Danes are described as having low expectations （i。e。 are pessimists）， they “shun ostentation” and "distrust exuberant expressions of emotion，” and the Jutlanders apparently have some semi-apocryphal rules to follow， amongst which are:You shall not believe you are as good as we areYou shall not believe that you are more important than we areYou shall not believe you can teach us anythingThis all sounds very familiar to this born and bred Yorkshirewoman。 Indeed， I have been mistaken for both a Dane and a Swede （whilst in those countries）， which I took as a compliment。 The Swedes describe themselves as lagom， which means， variously: moderate， reasonable， fair， acting in a commons sense way， and rational， all of which seems like the best way to be， the way I’d aspire to be。 Is this my Viking ancestry？One wonders if the Scandi-model of high taxation/strong welfare state has been so successful because it hasn't been tied to ideology: it's not seen as redistribution of wealth from rich to poor， it's not even viewed as socialism so much as being a universal benefit: all of society functions better if more equal。 It becomes almost patriotic rather than political。Having been to four of these countries， my impressions were : Norway is expensive and rude。 Denmark expensive， a bit more groovy and a bit less rude， Iceland is expensive， bleakly beautiful and full of bonkers people， and Sweden is just lovely: England through the looking glass， where everything is like the UK， but better （unless you go to Karlstad – don’t under any circumstance go to Karlstad）， except the food， which is worse。 。。。more
Ostap
，
The first and largest part， about Denmark where the author has spent several years， is fantastic - at the same time hilariously funny and deeply insightful。 I give it 5。 The rest of the chapters are about the countries where author didn't live， just visited， and they lack both the depth and the drive of the Denmark chapter。 Still， they are interesting， occasionally funny and well worth reading。 I give them 4。 The sum is 4+。 Just don't read the epilogue where the otherwise sharp and acrid author The first and largest part， about Denmark where the author has spent several years， is fantastic - at the same time hilariously funny and deeply insightful。 I give it 5。 The rest of the chapters are about the countries where author didn't live， just visited， and they lack both the depth and the drive of the Denmark chapter。 Still， they are interesting， occasionally funny and well worth reading。 I give them 4。 The sum is 4+。 Just don't read the epilogue where the otherwise sharp and acrid author becomes unexpectedly soft and bombastic - it may ruin the experience。 。。。more
MargaretDH
，
This was fine， but ultimately forgettable。 I read this for book club， and we did have lots to talk about， and I did find it validating to discover that my Danish family is not the only one who re-writes and personalized the lyrics of popular songs to celebrate big life milestones of relatives， but I think I'll struggle to recall most of this in a couple of months。 This was fine， but ultimately forgettable。 I read this for book club， and we did have lots to talk about， and I did find it validating to discover that my Danish family is not the only one who re-writes and personalized the lyrics of popular songs to celebrate big life milestones of relatives， but I think I'll struggle to recall most of this in a couple of months。 。。。more
A。
，
Ocurrió así: Una mañana lluviosa Michael Booth， escritor y periodista inglés residente en Dinamarca y felizmente casado con una danesa， leyó en su periódico que según unestudiodeunaprestigiosaUniversidad， los daneses habían ganado， （Sí， sí。 Otra vez。 Ja。） el campeonato de "Seres Más Felices De La Especie Humana" （Los argentinos no fuimos los subcampeones esta vez。 Ja。。。raro， sí） Parece que en este momento Michael， que sufría al ver a Inglaterra perder otro campeonato de lo que sea， pensó un poco Ocurrió así: Una mañana lluviosa Michael Booth， escritor y periodista inglés residente en Dinamarca y felizmente casado con una danesa， leyó en su periódico que según unestudiodeunaprestigiosaUniversidad， los daneses habían ganado， （Sí， sí。 Otra vez。 Ja。） el campeonato de "Seres Más Felices De La Especie Humana" （Los argentinos no fuimos los subcampeones esta vez。 Ja。。。raro， sí） Parece que en este momento Michael， que sufría al ver a Inglaterra perder otro campeonato de lo que sea， pensó un poco avinagrado: "Bueno， pues entonces lo saben esconder muy bien。 A mí no me parecen tan joviales" Y， enérgicamente dispuesto a demostrar su hipótesis， escribió este interesante libro。 Con un sentido del humor seco， áspero y recalcitrante y， ante todo， con una inocultable envidia， Booth decide poner el dedo en la dolorosa llaga de los defectos y estereotipos ajenos。 Pero también en el reconocimiento de sus virtudes: El "Hygee" danés y sus estratosféricos impuestos， los híbridos islandeses， los nuevos ricos noruegos y esa maravillosa raza "no verbal": los finlandeses。 Parece que hay mucha más diversidad de la que creíamos， aunque comulgan en algo: parece que todos miran mal a los suecos。Mientras， los demás seguimos participando。 Y es que， no hay caso， si algo le falta a esta gente alta， rubia y silenciosa para ser perfecta， es el perfecto humor británico。 。。。more
Mae
，
3。0Found this a bit tedious as I have absolutely no connection to the subject matter。 The book club discussion was lively and stimulating so mission accomplished！！
Leslie
，
While an interesting Book Club discussion ensued， it just didn’t add anything to my reading life。
Catherine
，
There was quite a bit of good information explaining the differences between the five Nordic countries and how they might view one another。 I liked that the author was English， married to a Dane， able to give an outsider’s opinion yet still a European and not American。 The reason the rating isn’t higher is because I thought the author had biases and that the book focused too much on the topics that were of personal interest to him。 At times there were just too many rankings and ratings quoted （e There was quite a bit of good information explaining the differences between the five Nordic countries and how they might view one another。 I liked that the author was English， married to a Dane， able to give an outsider’s opinion yet still a European and not American。 The reason the rating isn’t higher is because I thought the author had biases and that the book focused too much on the topics that were of personal interest to him。 At times there were just too many rankings and ratings quoted （especially around schools）。 The author seemed eager to criticize these countries for not being perfect， yet must grudgingly admit there aren’t many places doing better。 。。。more
Sofia
，
This book is much more nuanced than the title would suggestThe title makes it sound like this book will go over all the things that are wrong with Scandinavian countries and their welfare state。 However， it is much more nuanced than that， presenting the good with some of the aspects that a lot of people might not find so great， like social conformity。 Ironically given the title， the author concludes that Scandinavian countries are closer to perfect than the others。 I would recommend this book to This book is much more nuanced than the title would suggestThe title makes it sound like this book will go over all the things that are wrong with Scandinavian countries and their welfare state。 However， it is much more nuanced than that， presenting the good with some of the aspects that a lot of people might not find so great， like social conformity。 Ironically given the title， the author concludes that Scandinavian countries are closer to perfect than the others。 I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to go beyond the medias depiction of the Scandinavian countries as basically perfect。 There are flaws， and it just depends on whether each person thinks those flaws are worth it。。 It also has a lot of interviews with diverse groups of people and a lot of cultural commentary， from someone who clearly has spent a lot of time there。 Ultimately， whether this is a perfect， or almost perfect society， depends on what your opinion is， what this “perfect” means to you personally， and how much you are willing to give up for an almost equal society。 For my part， as an American， I really hope we never become anything like this 。。。more
Todd
，
I have a Danish last name （if I had a nickel for every time I've uttered "It's Andersen with an "en" not an "on"， I'd be a millionaire）， and my mom's side is Swede-Finn， so I've always been curious about the countries that are my namesake。 And since curiosity about Scandinavia being a social democratic utopia has been hot in the media lately， I was intrigued to read this book。 I really enjoyed this book， as Booth does a great job at being balanced and looking at both the positives and negatives I have a Danish last name （if I had a nickel for every time I've uttered "It's Andersen with an "en" not an "on"， I'd be a millionaire）， and my mom's side is Swede-Finn， so I've always been curious about the countries that are my namesake。 And since curiosity about Scandinavia being a social democratic utopia has been hot in the media lately， I was intrigued to read this book。 I really enjoyed this book， as Booth does a great job at being balanced and looking at both the positives and negatives of each Nordic country。 He does a good job at balancing different topics， whether it be their cultural norms， quirks， politics， economics， and societal challenges。 And it doesn't hurt that Booth is a funny， clever writer with plenty of dry wit。I did get annoyed sometimes when he was delving deep into an interesting topic or travel story and would just abruptly change the subject， and leave you wanting more。 。。。more
Ahmed Abd
，
Very gorgeous and rich experience This is the first time for me to buy an E book And although English is not my primary language， I managed to finish reading the whole book within three days Wonderful book and your agile humorous way of writing and introducing facts as well as individual experience and opinions 。
Lartemis
，
Recommended by Road Scholar for my trip with them to Iceland。 Covered all Nordic countries: Iceland， Denmark， Norway， Sweden， Finland。 The similarities and differences between the countries is very interesting。
Emilie
，
Great book， his writing is informative yet funny and relaxed。
Noah
，
An easy-to-read and fascinating look into the five countries in and near Scandinavia。 Booth is funny and relatable with a variety of personal experiences during his travels to Denmark， Iceland， Sweden， Finland， and Norway。 He discusses only the most interesting aspects of each nation and covers topics ranging from their geography to their culture。
Alivia Jones
，
This is an entertaining， casual read， and （for me at least） will probably be a gateway drug into learning more about Scandinavian history and culture。 It does strike me as under-researched; Booth makes claim after claim with little evidence and has a rather skeptical view of experts， as well as a neo-liberal British bias toward politics。 Booth also loves coming up with theories linking a country's historical background to the psyche of its people， which I find extremely suspect--is it even possi This is an entertaining， casual read， and （for me at least） will probably be a gateway drug into learning more about Scandinavian history and culture。 It does strike me as under-researched; Booth makes claim after claim with little evidence and has a rather skeptical view of experts， as well as a neo-liberal British bias toward politics。 Booth also loves coming up with theories linking a country's historical background to the psyche of its people， which I find extremely suspect--is it even possible to analyze the personality of an entire country？ I'd recommend this as a light summer or vacation read that will simultaneously dispel and create new stereotypes of Danes， Norwegians， Finns， Icelanders， and Swedes in your mind， and introduce you to Scandinavia's geography and history in an easily digestible format。 It's certainly not social science or even a very good travelogue （fewer fluffy interviews and more interesting travel stories， please！）， but it's not a *bad* book， all things considered。 Booth can be quite funny and has a tone very similar to Bill Bryson's。 。。。more
Sandra
，
3。5/5
Wendy （bardsblond）
，
I really loved this book。 It gives keen insight into Northern European culture。 What I especially liked about it was the distinctions between Nordic countries – an outsider wouldn’t necessarily be attuned to all the various jealousies and stereotypes that Nordic countries have about one another but they’re so fascinating。 Definitely an enjoyable read。
Olga
，
A highly entertaining and humorous personal insight into Scandinavian countries。
Taylor
，
A fun and unique tour through the five Nordic countries。 It combines history， journalism， and a traveler's observations to give you a comprehensive understanding of each country and what makes them unique。 Politics， economics， and culture are blended together for a style of writing I really enjoyed。 Counter to most popular Nordic books that analyze the positive and how to emulate it， Booth's British pessimism pushes him to look further into each country。 He looks at strengths and weaknesses， wit A fun and unique tour through the five Nordic countries。 It combines history， journalism， and a traveler's observations to give you a comprehensive understanding of each country and what makes them unique。 Politics， economics， and culture are blended together for a style of writing I really enjoyed。 Counter to most popular Nordic books that analyze the positive and how to emulate it， Booth's British pessimism pushes him to look further into each country。 He looks at strengths and weaknesses， with more emphasis on the latter。 Is this the book to finally bring Meik Wiking down a peg and get him to stop being so damn happy all the time？ I hope not， because I enjoy both authors and what they do。 And I can see how this slight focus on negativity can be draining on the reader。 Inequality， totalitarianism， exceptionalism， debt， eugenics， and declining satisfaction aren't common topics in the Nordic non-fiction genre。 But there's plenty of positivity too， since Booth shares a love and fascination with these countries， like his readers。 This is my 5th or 6th book on the Nordic region， and I was still learning new things the whole time。 Iceland's geothermal industry， high-context cultures， what sets Finland apart from the rest， and the Danish show Borgen were some of my favorite topics discussed。 。。。more
Bert
，
For something who knew next to nothing about Scandinavia， I really enjoyed this book。 Very interesting and informative。 Obviously， it was written by an outsider and only scratched the surface of it's subject matter， but I learned a lot。 For something who knew next to nothing about Scandinavia， I really enjoyed this book。 Very interesting and informative。 Obviously， it was written by an outsider and only scratched the surface of it's subject matter， but I learned a lot。 。。。more
Dorte
，
We have this danish saying about "pille sig selv i navlen" which roughly translates into picking your own navel - it's used quite negativæy about someone self-centred。 Which is sorta how this book made me feel。 Give me a bunch of fact about Denmark for me to judge if they fit into the Denmark I know。 Where are all of these singing Danes he is meeting？ I have never sung at a private gathering except for Christmas， Happy Birthday and maybe a drinking song as a teenager。 But he makes It out as we d We have this danish saying about "pille sig selv i navlen" which roughly translates into picking your own navel - it's used quite negativæy about someone self-centred。 Which is sorta how this book made me feel。 Give me a bunch of fact about Denmark for me to judge if they fit into the Denmark I know。 Where are all of these singing Danes he is meeting？ I have never sung at a private gathering except for Christmas， Happy Birthday and maybe a drinking song as a teenager。 But he makes It out as we don't do anything else。 Other than that it can feel like the Denmark Booth describes is a very Copenhagen Denmark。 At least to me。 The Denmark I knew growing up and am to an extent living in today are very different from the Denmark that takes place in Copenhagen and the surrounding suburbs - I lived there for about 5 years so I would know to some extent。 But that I guess is the trouble with looking inwards at an entire nation， not everything is going to fit。 The book did give me lots of reasons to laugh （in a siblingly love-hate kinda way） at Norway， Sweeden， Finland and Iceland。 But also learnt a lot about my neighbouring countries。 This dynamic we have of wither conquering each other or fighting has sort of made us stronger together in our way of thought。 The author is very present is in this book - his British preferences are very front and centre when the nordic and British preferences differ。 Which sometimes makes it tedious to hear about nudity or feminism/family values。 To give some of the examples， but at times it felt unnecessary to get so much opinion about if he feared that children were maltreated by being put into daycare earlier。 （I am paraphrasing here）。 All in all， I can confirm that Danes do love our flag and we do put it on practically everything。 。。。more
Andréa
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Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley。
Lauren
，