Carlo Bastasin and Gianni Toniolo provide a much-needed, up-to-date economic history of Italy from unification in 1861 to the present day. They show how, thirty years after unification, Italy began a long phase of convergence with more advanced economies so that by the late twentieth century Italy's per capita income reached the levels of Germany, France and the UK. From the mid-1990s, however, the Italian economy declined first in relative and then absolute terms. The authors describe the intertwined financial and institutional crises that eroded trust in the political system and in the economy at the exact juncture when new technologies and markets transformed the global economy. Longstanding problems of uneven levels of education and obsolete bureaucratic and judicial practices deepened the division between economically vibrant regions and the rest, causing polarization, political instability and rising public debt. Italy's contemporary malaise makes the country a test-case for understanding the implications of protracted declines in productivity and the flattening of GDP growth for the stability of western democracies, resulting in populism, mistrust and political instability.

Italy is a country of recent decline and long-standing idiosyncratic traits- a rich society where the rule of law is weak and political accountability is low. This book draws on political economic literature and historical analysis to argue that a battle of ideas can ease the shift to a fairer and more efficient equilibrium.

A brief, up-to-date account of Italy's transformation from an agrarian state to an industrial powerhouse.

The first book to fully document the scandal-riddled rise and fall of Italy's Prime Minister and tabloid star—Silvio Berlusconi

'Clear, cool, plainly written and devastating' Lucy Hughes-Hallett, Times Literary Supplement A major history of the rise and fall of Italian fascism: a dark tale of violence, ideals and a country at war. In the aftermath of the First World War, the seeds of fascism were sown in Italy. While the country reeled in shock, a new movement emerged from the chaos: one that preached hatred for politicians and love for the fatherland; one that promised to build a 'New Roman Empire', and make Italy a great power once again. Wearing black shirts and wielding guns, knives and truncheons, the proponents of fascism embraced a climate of violence and rampant masculinity. Led by Benito Mussolini, they would systematically destroy the organisations of the left, murdering and torturing anyone who got in their way. In Blood and Power, historian John Foot draws on decades of research to chart the turbulent years between 1915 and 1945, and beyond. Drawing widely from accounts of people across the political spectrum – fascists, anti-fascists, communists, anarchists, victims, perpetrators and bystanders – he tells the story of fascism and its legacy, which still, disturbingly, reverberates to this day.

In this gripping narrative, Carlo Bastasin reconstructs the main political decisions of the euro crisis, unveiling the hidden interests and the secret diplomacy behind the scene. The European dream was both the rejection of war and the creation of a new spirit of peaceful cooperation. Yet confrontation has been the hallmark of the euro crisis, and national opportunistic gimmicks have driven the awkward attempts to solve the crisis itself. Today, Europe is in a crisis of democracy, which Bastasin has dubbed, "the first War of Interdependence of the global age." Praise for the first edition of Saving EuropeBastasin does an admirable job in analysing the euro-zone's economic challenges and is a sure-footed guide through the seemingly endless European Union summit meetings that were supposed to resolve them. He also has an eye for the human detail that makes his sad account of institutional muddle surprisingly compelling. — Financial Times Bastasin's book is worth reading for its detailed political narrative of the eurozone crisis to date, focusing on the interaction among decision-makers in Europe's capitals. — Foreign Affairs A reconstruction that may be considered definitive. Revelations on the European negotiations are written with talent and go hand in hand with no-esoteric economic analysis and with the right amount of realism to reach the political substance. —Corriere della Sera Anyone looking for general knowledge and deeper understanding of the crisis, I can recommend a formidable analysis by Carlo Bastasin: Saving Europe. The author is a very unusual combination of a qualified economist and driven journalism. —Svenska Dagbladet

"Carlo Bastasin and Gianni Toniolo provide a much-needed, up-to-date economic history of Italy from unification in 1861 to the present. They reveal the factors behind Italy's twentieth-century growth as well as how economic decline in the last thirty years has resulted in rising levels of populism, mistrust and government instability"--