International Development

Unger’s book is the best single-volume history of international development published to date. It would make a valuable addition to graduate courses on international and global history, and its clear and direct style would make it useful for select advanced undergraduate courses as well. Professional historians will also find the book an excellent resource for writing lectures on topics ranging from international perspectives on the Tennessee Valley Authority to the origins of development economics. The book should be the starting point for any researcher interested in the topic. * Cold War Studies *
[T]he book is very suitable as an introduction for students of global studies or similar courses, where it can be a good supplement and sometimes also an important correction to economic and social science literature. * Comparativ *
With clarity and authority Unger has provided a firm foundation for those readers eager to grasp a critical global issue, the sprawling and contentious history of international development. * David Ekbladh, Associate Professor of History, Tufts University, USA *
In her masterful survey of the literature, Corinna Unger traces the forerunners of development aid yet emphasizing that the Second World War and the Cold War set a different framework for international development. She highlights the origins of great power competition as well as the role of international organizations, and points to the importance of small donor states, recipient nations and academics. Unger discusses the ideas that created the changing fads of development aid and the practices that at times reinforced and as often undermined foreign aid orthodoxy. International Development is what old hands in the field have long wished they could tell their students to read. It is for both teachers and graduate students the point of departure for new adventures in the field of the history of development aid. * Helge Pharo, Professor Emeritus of International History, University of Oslo, Norway *