 A formidable army that has not fought for 500 years
First published in the early 1980's during the Cold War, this book is still in print. Because its title is in French it has never been a bestseller, but people continue to buy it. Why?
Perhaps the book's popularity is maintained by word of mouth, year in year out, by readers having served in Zurich or Geneva with a bank, an international organisation or NGO based there. Again why?
Perhaps to warn their friends that Switzerland is not a normal country: As John Mc Phee writes, most countries have an army, but only the Swiss army has a country. The Swiss army is described as a totally vigilant entity, despite peace during the past 500 years. Strategic bridges and passes are mined, high mountains hide untold military resources. Army recruits are thoroughly trained, then sent home with their rifle and ammunition, and recalled for 2-3 week every year for quite serious exercises (well described by the author) until well into their forties.
A review should not reveal the best parts of a book. So read about the effects of WW2 firestorms in Germany on Swiss building codes, how foreign military attachés were shocked by the Swiss air force during an exercise, how a lowly employee can command his boss during annual military exercises, as reservists.
This is a wonderful little book based on talking with real Swiss. Mc Phee takes part in one such annual military exercise and his principal (but not only) resource person is a Swiss vintner. No book references, just people talking.
 Swiss Foreign Policy = Peace through Strength.
La Place de la Concorde Suisse, John McPhee
4 Stars.
This book illustrates the function and role of the Swiss Army and the prominence it has in Swiss life. In a very approachable and easy-to-read fashion, you get a picture of what makes Switzerland unique and how its army works. The Swiss have been doing for centuries what Ronald Reagan proclaimed in the 80's: Peace through strength.
Stylistically, it is written by an outsider looking in on the army as he follows around a soldier; it has detail as well as a sense of personalness that draws you into the book. Thus, the book is a very good way to get a quick, informative glimpse at the Swiss Army.
The author does a lot of "telling" about the way things work; then the book just ends. I thought the author would somehow wrap up the book with a conclusion or have had a thesis but it did not: The book was written and structured with the purpose of informing, not persuading. What is portrayed and illustrated is a fairly glamorous look at the Army, though there are a couple of lines where he speaks of youth who are contentious about the military system ... but, it is a wonder that a country can live at peace for hundreds of years, and it takes a strong military to do so... the young people need to learn from those that have come before them.
A fascinating story, beautifully told.
Long before the phenomenal success of books like "Longitude" and "Cod", John McPhee perfected the art of the 'single topic in depth' book, in many cases expanding on his trademark (long) New Yorker essays. In "La Place de la Concorde Suisse", he digs below the picture-postcard prettiness and deceptive blandness of Switzerland and its people to deliver a fascinating (and slightly sinister) portrait of the Swiss Army.
One of his most interesting books, written before he gave himself over to the fascination with geology that has inspired many of his more recent efforts.
To say that McPhee writes well is a gross understatement. He is the literary father of Malcolm Gladwell, with the same characteristic ability to take an apparently abstruse topic and write about it with extraordinary lucidity, weaving a fascinating story that draws the reader in and holds the attention right to the end.
If you haven't read any of McPhee's work, this would a good book to start with. Other favorites of mine include "The Crofter and the Laird", "The Headmaster", or either of the collections "Giving Good Weight" and "The John McPhee Reader"
History & description of the Swiss army
McPhee presents a history and description of the Swiss army.
For me, as with any of McPhee's books, if I'm at all interested in the topic, and in the mood to enjoy his novel-like descriptions of ancillary details, it's a darn fine read!
 A portrait of Switzerland
La Place de la Concorde Suisse is about the Swiss army, but, as they say, when you talk about Switzerland, you talk about their defense. Because everyone in Switzerland is in the army, you are talking about their country. An incredibly rich country, and thus, an incredibly paranoid country. Although many people are now looking at the Swiss, and especially their banks, with new eyes following the revelations of Nazi war booty being hid within their anonymous, numbered accounts, McPhee put them in the spotlight a decade earlier here. While his light is not as bright as some of those today, he did discover some interesting bits which had been hid by shadows before, like their placement of explosives (or identification of where to place such) under each bridge into the country, a discussion of the surreptitious bombing they suffered under Allied planes in the war, and the old boys network that links the army and the industry. At the end, you don't necessarily emerge with a message, but rather a portrait of the country.
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