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Reviews & Endorsements

Reviews

Looking for a gift idea for the business person in your life? Here, highly recommended, are what I consider the best business-related books published in 2013. Startup Rising: The Entrepreneurial Revolution Remaking the Middle East: The headlines this year from the Middle East have mostly been depressing. But Christopher Schroeder's engaging personal account of the emergence of a generation of entrepreneurs in the region provides plenty of reason for hope. An inspiring alternative narrative to the doom and gloom." -- Matthew Bishop, US Business Editor, Economist

[Schroeder] paints a remarkable picture of the entrepreneurial shift going on in Dubai, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and other regions…illuminating." -- Publishers Weekly

The narrative really comes alive when the author chronicles the activities of the tech-savvy young Egyptians, Jordanians and Lebanese who are beginning to create new kinds of hope for their countries... A lively introduction to a new generation's efforts to shape a future free of outdated notions of entitlement." -- Kirkus

It provides a refreshing break from the hackneyed analyses of the region that reduce its people to crudely drawn cultural cliches while ignoring the other things that motivate young Arabs (like people everywhere...)" -- Financial Times

Startup Rising is an excellent read for those involved with or interested in global entrepreneurship ecosystems, and especially relevant for those who intend to build businesses or expand into the region." -- Young Upstarts

A quick, fun read, it’s perhaps one of the few books being published about today’s Middle East for which the Arab Spring is only a fleeting introduction...[It] reads like a friendly conversation, in which Schroeder manages to warn the West against its own myopia, tour readers through the Arab world’s entrepreneurship heavyweights, and render a wealth of data into tangible opportunities." -- Wamda

Startup Rising is a quick and enjoyable read. The message repeated by those he interviews again and again is that success will breed success. His own conclusion is that those underestimating the entrepreneurial spirit of the Middle East do so at their own peril." -- The National

Schroeder is the author of Startup Rising: The Entrepreneurial Revolution Remaking the Middle East.  In this rich, perceptive work, he makes a point highly relevant to our chapter on foreign policy and national security." -- Bessette Pitney

“Startup Rising” (www.startuprisingbook.com) proposes a new narrative for the future of the Middle East, in which a widespread entrepreneurial spirit propels the region into the global marketplace." -- Saudi Gazette

But what really makes this book important to the tech community — and a worthy complement to other “startup” tomes such as David Kidder’s “Startup Playbook” — is that it strips away the hubris and conventional thinking of what has made startups successful in the U.S. Instead, it focuses on the passion and creativity, real needs of consumers, and community that really anchor next generation services." -- Local Onliner

For those looking to promote stability and prosperity in the Middle East, supporting and investing in the region’s start-ups is a good option. As small and medium businesses continue to drive regional economies, Arab entrepreneurs, including youth and women, can create a future for themselves while also boosting innovation and growth in their economies." -- Council on Foreign Relations

What is so interesting about Schroeder's position is that he claims that the potential for technological development in countries such as Syria and Iran is the same as in the USA." -- Engineering & Technology Magazine

On my vacation a few weeks ago, I read Chris Schroeder‘s book Startup Rising: The Entrepreneurial Revolution Remaking the Middle East. It was outstanding. Chris goes extremely deep on the state of entrepreneurship in the Middle East. His travels through the region are extensive and his story telling, interviews, and examples are as well done as any that I’ve read in a book about entrepreneurship." -- Brad Feld

Endorsements

Entrepreneurship isn't about just starting a business--it's a way of looking at the world. In this terrific book, Schroeder profiles dozens of innovators in the Middle East who are world class exemplars of this way of thinking. They're taking control of their lives, starting amazing businesses, and changing the world. There's no better guide to the Middle East's own Silicon Valley than Christopher M. Schroeder. Highly recommended." -- Reid Hoffman, co-founder/chairman of LinkedIn and co-author of the #1 NYT bestseller The Start-up of You

Here’s a book that makes you think beyond the gloomy headlines about the Middle East--and see how smart men and women are building the foundations of a prosperous future. In Startup Rising, Christopher M. Schroeder takes readers on a guided tour of the entrepreneurial movement that has gone almost unnoticed as the Arab Spring shatters the old political order. By the end of the book you’ll be rooting for these young business leaders and gutsy innovators to build the Arab 21st century." --David Ignatius, columnist, The Washington Post

Christopher M. Schroeder has a message we should all hear loud and clear: To hell with pessimism about the Middle East. In Startup Rising, Chris’s more than one dozen trips across the Arab world are woven together into a deeply personal and detail filled narrative of how technology can transform social and political orders from the ground up. He convincingly shows Arabs rich and poor seizing the moment, and converting centuries of entrepreneurial spirit into disruptive and positive energy. The startups rising in the wake of the Arab Spring will ensure that the region isn’t left behind." --Parag Khanna, international bestselling author of The Second World, How to Run the World, and Hybrid Reality

In this rich and incisive book Christopher Schroeder tells a fascinating tale about another Middle East, where new ideas, bustling startups, and promising ventures, as opposed to politics and violence, are shaping the future. A rare and eye-opening first hand account that provides a powerful explanation for why the Arab Spring happened, and why its future may yet be brighter than headline news suggest. This book is a must read for anyone interested in the Middle East or how entrepreneurship and technology startups take flight." --Vali Nasr, author of Forces of Fortune and The Dispensable Nation

Startup Rising is one of the first to cover this very important topic: The young entrepreneurs who are the major driving force in the future growth and development of the Arab World." --Wael Ghonim, Founder and Chairman, Nabadat Foundation, and author of Revolution 2.0

Startup Rising is contrarian, as are many great entrepreneurs: His stories of people, innovation, and ideas in the Middle East are cautiously hopeful--a contrast to the grim news stories. Full of policy and investment insight, this is a bottom-up look at the new generation of tech entrepreneurs of the Middle East that are fast becoming their countries' greatest resource." --Robert B. Zoellick, Former President of the World Bank Group, US Trade Representative, and Deputy Secretary of State

This is one of the rare books that will change how you see the world. Christopher M. Schroeder brings to life the emerging Middle East entrepreneurial ecosystems, providing a powerful understanding of entrepreneurship anywhere in the world and specifically of the Middle East’s emerging generation of questioning risk-takers." --Marvin Ammori, Bernard L. Schwartz Fellow, The New America Foundation

Startup Rising shatters our stereotypes of the Middle East. You can just feel the dynamism bubbling up from below and sense the immense possibilities for the future. Schroeder’s ability to tell this fascinating story of the breadth and depth of entrepreneurship in the region is stunning." --James Goldgeier, Dean, School of International Service, American University

Startup Rising powerfully articulates what we instinctively know to be true--each country, region, and society has the will and talent to determine its own future. Schroeder illuminates a Middle East poised for entrepreneurial growth, fueled by innovation, and ready to turn opportunity into impact and collective progress for both women and men." --Alyse Nelson, President & CEO, Vital Voices Global Partnership

Christopher M. Schroeder identifies the trends reshaping the Middle East from the bottom-up. He talks to the entrepreneurs at the cutting edge to reveal the revolution the media has missed --whether in mobile technologies, consumer products, or, yes, women eager to make their mark. This book is essential for anyone looking to understand--or invest in--the new Middle East." --Karen Kornbluh, former US Ambassador to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

Interest in entrepreneurship in the Middle East has never been greater, which reflects the critical role that new ventures can play in catalyzing economic change in the region. This book provides a lively look at the individuals and institutions behind these exciting and important developments." --Josh Lerner, Harvard Business School and author of The Architecture of Innovation

Christopher M. Schroeder has done a service to the Middle East by highlighting the extraordinary energy and potential of entrepreneurs in the region. This area will be a hotbed of new ideas over the next 20 years creating hundreds of thousands of jobs." --Kevin Ryan, chairman and founder, Gilt

Publications Christopher has been featured in

المنشورات التي تحدثت عن خبرات كريستوفر وأعماله