Die Erweiterung

Ich mag den Schreibstil von Menasse und das Buch ist grandios recherchiert. Macht Lust auf Albanien kennenlernen und die Doppelmoral der EU bzw. die nationalen Interessen diverser Staaten wird gnadenlos aufgedeckt. Die Charaktere sind hervorragend gezeichnet und in einem der EU-Bürokraten erkenne ich mich sogar ein bisschen wieder.
Am Ende schade, dass das Schicksal vieler HauptdarstellerInnen ungewiss bleibt und der Autor ins Philosophische abdriftet.

Gripping and moving, wide-ranging, eye-opening and angering, but not quite as interesting as the first part [b:The Capital|41817524|The Capital|Robert Menasse|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1556248911l/41817524.SY75.jpg|57532743]. Several wonderfully meandering plotlines with memorable characters come together to paint the picture of a Europe searching for itself (or is it?).

After such a wild ride of 600 pages through Poland, Belgium, Albania, and other places, I was disappointed by the abrupt and seemingly pointless ending. Also, if you're thinking about picking this book up because of the "cruise ship" thing - don't, it's not featured very much.

I don't think it's necessary to read [b:The Capital|41817524|The Capital|Robert Menasse|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1556248911l/41817524.SY75.jpg|57532743] before delving into this one. There is thematic overlap and the narration style is similar, but no prior knowledge is required.