Consider the following: Would your opinion (both of the book and the reviewer) be different if the quote "At stake here, however, is much more than mere vanity. The Americans don't really have much else besides that for which they stand." was not authored by the reviewer, but attributed to the book's author who is, in fact, American?
katfeete had the experience of attending a year of school in NZ. Part of the international student orientation was asking each group to present something of their homeland's culture. The response of a group of Californians who were in attendance? "We're American, we don't have a culture."
I'm not sure where I'm going with this; maybe if you reply, it'll help my thoughts gel. Or congeal :)
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"At stake here, however, is much more than mere vanity. The Americans don't really have much else besides that for which they stand."
was not authored by the reviewer, but attributed to the book's author who is, in fact, American?
"We're American, we don't have a culture."
I'm not sure where I'm going with this; maybe if you reply, it'll help my thoughts gel. Or congeal :)