The book's aim is to be a one-volume comparative culture analysis on a par with Toynbee's "A Study of History".

Despite its shortcomings (the author is way too often intruding on his subject of analysis, beyond the mere overlap of opinions with information), it is an interesting attempt to look at a common thread that could pick elements/patterns from various cultures, and create not a "melting pot", but a "shared arena".

If anything, also if you are already familiar with one or more of the cultures discussed, it is worth reading to challenge your own assumptions, and use the book as if it were a discussion with an informed, also if biased, counterpart, pushing you to read (and talk) your way toward a better understanding- as options aren't limited to a "clash of civilizations" or "relativism-based melting pot".

Anyway- at over 800 quite dense pages, with plenty of references, it could actually be used as a "baseline" book, to be complemented by others on specific cultures (including others that aren't considered by the author), e.g. in cross-cultural (or web-based, i.e. inherently "global") initiatives.

Obviously- I went through the book several times, focusing each time on different element- a mere cover-to-cover might make sense only if you first read at least something more "neutral" on each one of the cultures described ( )