The SSL ‘Book of the Month’ feature highlights a book in our collection that has been chosen by one of our Subject Consultants. This may be a recent addition to our stock or an existing item that we would like to share with you.
October’s Book of the Month was selected by John Southall, Bodleian Data Librarian and Subject Consultant for Economics and Sociology.
Value chains: the new economic imperialism
Intan Suwandi
Available at HD5852.SUW 2019 but currently on display at our New Books Display Area.
Winner of the 2018 Paul A. Baran-Paul M. Sweezy Memorial Award for original work regarding the political economy of imperialism, it was chosen because of the insights it provides into recent structural developments in the global economy
Book Overview
In Value Chains, Suwandi investigates the processes through which multinational corporations, located primarily in the Global North, capture value from the Global South. She considers various current corporate strategies that enforce “economical” and “flexible” production. This includes labour management methods that serve to maintain the imperial dominance of the North, while continuing the dependency of the Global South and polarizing the global economy.
Case studies of Indonesian suppliers exemplify the growing burden borne by the workers of the Global South, whose labour creates the surplus value that enriches the economy of the North, as well as the secondary capitals of the South.
Suwandi’s richly documented book depicts in detail the relations of unequal exchange that structure today’s world economy.
Reviews
“This is a marvellous, highly accessible book. It zeroes in on global value chains, the most important transformation of the neoliberal era, and weaves excellent theoretical insights and empirical research into a notable contribution to literature on global political economy and Marxist theories of imperialism.”
John Smith, author, Imperialism in the Twenty-First Century
“In a brisk 172 pages, Suwandi piles on the evidence that power is an important element in describing behaviours of firms and persistent global inequalities.”
Alexandra Eisenbarth, The New School Economic Review, 11 (2021)
How can I access it?
A hard copy can be found on our New Books Display Area (around the corner from our Issue Desk), which can be borrowed by Oxford University students and staff. It is usually shelved at HD5852.SUW 2019.
What would your SSL Book of the Month be? Do you have a favourite book in our collection? If so, we would love to know what it is. Add a comment below or email us.