Book review: the social atlas of Europe by Dimitris Ballas, Danny Dorling and Benjamin Hennig

By combining a human geography perspective with graphic representation, The Social Atlas of Europe sets out to explore European identity through the social realities experienced by Europeans. Patricia Hogwood finds the authors’ unique approach highlights the unifying features of European social life and the subtle fragmentation of ‘Europe’ that is often masked, or at least obscured, by the logic of the nation state. The work harnesses state-of-the-art geographical information systems and new cartography techniques to reveal a European identity more essential, more fluid and more intriguing than traditional perceptions allow.