This book sets out the background to Greece's current political and economic crisis, examining its three decades of stopstart reforms and their political and institutional consequences.
Ever since Greece's 1974 transition to democracy there has been constant talk of reforms. Major changes in its economy, society and polity have attempted to bring Greek institutions and policies in line with more developed West European countries. Some reforms have come to fruition (creation of the NHS, Eurozone entry, banking liberalization, some privatizations), others have recurred over the years...

When Greece's economic troubles began to threaten the stability of the European Union in 2010, the nation found itself in the center of a whirlwind of international finger-pointing. In the years prior, Greece appeared to be politically secure and economically healthy. Upon its emergence in the center of the European economic maelstrom, however, observers and critics cited a century of economic hurdles, dictatorships, revolutions, and more reasons as to why their current crisis was understandable, if not predictable. The ancient birthplace of democracy and countless artistic, literary,...