Product Description
Culture Smart! provides essential information on attitudes, beliefs and behavior in different countries, ensuring that you arrive at your destination aware of basic manners, common courtesies, and sensitive issues. These concise guides tell you what to expect, how to behave, and how to establish a rapport with your hosts. This inside knowledge will enable you to steer clear of embarrassing gaffes and mistakes, feel confident in unfamiliar situations, and develop trust, friendships, and successful business relationships.

Culture Smart! offers illuminating insights into the culture and society of a particular country. It will help you to turn your visit-whether on business or for pleasure-into a memorable and enriching experience. Contents include


* customs, values, and traditions
* historical, religious, and political background
* life at home
* leisure, social, and cultural life
* eating and drinking
* do's, don'ts, and taboos
* business practices
* communication, spoken and unspoken


"Culture Smart has come to the rescue of hapless travellers." Sunday Times Travel

"... the perfect introduction to the weird, wonderful and downright odd quirks and customs of various countries." Global Travel

"...full of fascinating-as well as common-sense-tips to help you avoid embarrassing faux pas." Observer

"...as useful as they are entertaining." Easyjet Magazine

"...offer glimpses into the psyche of a faraway world." New York Times
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Customer Reviews (5)

Window into Sweden's culture
This is a fascinating book with great insights into Sweden's culture.Our daughter married a young man from Sweden and we wanted to learn as much about the culture of his homeland and this book has been very helpful and an interesting read.

Excellent!
I rec'd the book so quickly I barely had time to blink! Also, the book itself is very informative and accurate. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning about Sweden.

Fox News goes to Sweden
This book is full of subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) digs at the Swedish welfare state and Swedish "liberal" culture.The goal of a travel writer should be to be even-handed in her treatment of other cultures, even if the culture has practices she doesn't agree with.This book is as even-handed as Fox News is "fair and balanced."

It also displays a frustrating lack of nuance.A trait or tendency that is noteworthy or perhaps fairly common becomes a property that is universally exemplified.

It's not without useful information, but I recommend the Culture Shock book on Sweden rather than this book.

great book
A great little book, easy to read and filled with good information. Perfect as a first introduction, as well as for the one who thinks that he/she knows all about Sweden and the Swedes.

Concise & Helpful
This book gives a lot of insight to the intricacies of Swedish culture without going into too much detail.Especially recommended for anyone going on student exchange. ... Read more

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A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette in Sweden

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Culture and Customs of Sweden is an ideal introduction to this fascinating nation. The book opens with a broad overview of the country and then examines specific themes such as religion, marriage, family, gender issues, education, holidays, popular customs, sports and leisure, media, literature, performing arts, art, and architecture.

Throughout, the author seeks to strike a balance between the history of these many aspects of contemporary Sweden and what is happening there today—at a time when Sweden is undergoing many profound changes. For example, the chapter on literature looks at both the development of Swedish literature since the Middle Ages and at current interests, themes, and writers. Each of the themes covered is central to introducing both Sweden's past and its present, facilitating the kind of understanding that is so important in this ever-shrinking world.

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Customer Reviews (7)

Not Received
We never received this item from the original order, and re-ordered it in December, 2006.Elanders

good information, but..........
the information gained by reading this book is very good, and should be useful for anyone living in or visiting Sweden for a long time. It will be somewhat useful for my proposed short trip this summer, particularly since my partner will be involved in academic issues and a conference during our trip. I suspect there is a better book to prepare for a short visit, but I haven't found it yet.

Some parts of the Swedish character as portrayed ring *very true*, especially the idea that they have the best way figured out. I've seen that my whole life with my relatives who are first generation American from Sweden, and it even persists into the second generation. (but maybe that's me too! :-) )

The writing style strikes me as being written for a simpleton. I can't figure out why, since the vocabulary is not excessively limited. The reading level may be lower than that to which I am accustomed, but I'm not even sure if that's it. Maybe the author is out of practice with English, and she is from Britain, making the style seem stilted to my US ear? I read a lot, so that doesn't seem possible either....

It is, none-the-less, a worthwhile read and is inspiring me to get going on the rest of my Sweden research!

Swedish Culture Shock!
I have had many Swedish friends during college, and I've been to Sweden twice. This book has proven itself a very good resource book, and an fun read. It helped me a lot to understand the dos and don'ts when interacting with Swedish people. I highly recommend this book : )

A Must Buy!
A very accurate description of what to expect, what to do (swedish etiquitte), how to act and assimilate gracefuly into a deliteful culture.This book prepares your mind to be watchful of all the intricacies that make Sweden a unique and fascinating place.Without having read this book in advance of my arrival in Sweden, the Swedish details might have escaped my notice.This book is a definite buy - well written and very accurate.

Culture Shock! Sweden.
Hey everyone. I'm going to be an exchange student, leaving for Sweden on July 31, 2000, and coming back sometime in June/July 2001. I recently bought this book and loved it. It's got everything you need to know aboutstaying in a counrty for a long period of time, it gives you histroy of thecournty, laws, things you never thought about bringing, and what not tobring, what the people are like, just an amazing wealth of knowledge. Ifyour going to be spending time in Sweden, this is an awesome book to read. ... Read more

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The Left in the 1960s and 1970s has a powerful, almost mythical, place in the history of the 20th century. It was during these decades that the radical Left managed to renew the language of socialism as an alternative to communism and liberalism alike, but also when radicalism often led to extremism and social movements turned into political sects. Focusing on the Left in Denmark and Sweden during those turbulent decades, this study pays close attention to the political language in the two countries and shows the constant challenge to the concepts of the Left in the face of rapid social, cultural and political changes. The precarious relationship between the Left and the nation serves as a starting point for the exploration of the development of the New Left after the break with communism, the subsequent student revolts and radicalization of the late 1960s until the movement s apparent collapse at the end of the 1970s. This book illustrates the challenges the Left was facing in its attempt to articulate a credible political language at a time of social, cultural and political transformation. ... Read more

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This book is suitable for ages 9-14. From early Viking explorers, to reindeer herders and busy city-dwellers, find out more about the daily life and traditions in the Land of the Midnight Sun. The topics include: Early history and Viking invaders; The Sami and other ethnic groups; Arrival of Christianity; Birth of a kingdom; City and country living; Family celebrations; The smorgasbord and other food; and, Going to school. ... Read more

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Introduces the geography, history, economy, culture, and people of the fourth largest country in Europe. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An excellent introduction
This attractive book is an excellent introduction to the nation of Sweden. Divided into twelve chapters, it covers everything from geography and history, through arts, religion, leisure and foods. Along the way, there are countless color picture, which help make this book so pleasant to read. And, every possible subject is covered, at least briefly, in an easy to understand manner. Though this book is listed under the Children's Books category, let me recommend this book to anyone who wants to get a feel for modern Sweden! ... Read more

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This book is suitable for ages 9-14. You can learn more about the dramatic landscape of Sweden, from the hundreds of wooded islands along the coast, to the cold north where snow falls for eight months of the year. The topics include: Rivers and lakes; The Northern Lights; The people of Sweden; Stockholm and other cities; Farming and fishing; Industry and telecommunications; Transportation; and, Wildlife. ... Read more

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This book is suitable for children of ages 9-14. In addition to Pippi Longstocking and ABBA, explore Sweden's other contributions to literature and music, as well as the country's rich cultural traditions in architecture, art, and film. The topics include: Viking traditions; St. Lucia Day and other holidays; Religion and worship; The Kiruna Snow Festival; The zipper, seat belt, and other inventions; Swedish film, music, and dance; Art and architecture; and, The Swedish language. ... Read more

Product Description
Publisher: Washington, Govt. print. off.Publication date: 1872Subjects: Forests and forestryNotes: This is an OCR reprint. There may be numerous typos or missing text. There are no illustrations or indexes.When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. You can also preview the book there. ... Read more

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This study deals with witchcraft and magic in a legal, social and cultural context, with an interpretation based on an extensive body of Swedish sources comprising more than 350 cases involving 880 individuals. A majority of the trials took place during the 1700's. The prosecution of witches was characterized by leniency resulting only in a few death sentences; a majority of the cases were minor events concerning more often innocuous magic rather than the withces' sabbath of maleficient witchcraft. By focusing on the few prosecutions of maleficient witchcraft, this study promotes a critical discussion of how social and cultural perceptions of local withcraft were generated by the interactions in the legal process, providing us with insights into early modern European witchcraft. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Early modern witch-trials in Sweden
Wicked Arts is the English translation of Mr. Sörlin's Swedish book, 'Trolldoms- och vidskepseprocessena i Göta hovrätt', published in Umeå, in 1993. Other than a few revisions, the English edition is, for all practicalpurposes, identical to the Swedish one. The study is based upon anempirical investigation that closely examines 353 cases of reported sorceryand minor magic trials, in the period from 1635 to 1754. The book'sempirical findings are challenged throughout by three models ofinterpretation which, it may be claimed, have been prominent ininternational witch research during the past few decades: 1) theacculturation model, 2) the conflict model, and 3) the system model. In thepreface, Sörlin writes how the book was written in reaction to some aspectsof the sorcery studies of the 1980s when acculturation was of centralimportance. By studying minor witch crimes, in areas not affected by witchscares, this Swedish historian concludes that the prospect of elitism,underscored by a theory of the cultural conquest of rural society, is notrewarding as a model of interpretation. Interest in elitism is prominent,of course, in the southern Swedish cases, too, but there it is more aquestion of discipline and authority, and has less to do withacculturation, cultivation and assimilation. This study also shows thatsuch cases frequently have nothing to do with crises or conflicts. Sörlinmeans that the most rewarding approach is to study these sorcery cases ontheir own terms, or, in other words, as separate phenomena that followtheir own logic. The book is set apart by its dialogs and should be readslowly to make sense of all the nuances and interesting ideas. ... Read more

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This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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There have been dramatic shifts in the behavior of labor markets and the conduct of industrial relations in the last century. This volume explores these changes in the context of four very different societies: Germany, Sweden, Britain and Japan. Despite their manifest differences, the author demonstrates that for long periods their labor markets were similar in many respects. The book discusses the failure of neo-corporatism in Britain in the 1970s and the subsequent rise of Thatcherism; the rise of Japan as a model for orderly industrial relations in the 1970s; and the collapse of the German and the success of the Swedish labor markets in the 1930s. ... Read more

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(BAR -S264, 1985) ... Read more