• �One of the ten best business books of 1999.� -- Amazon.com

• � Fingleton ably articulates a contrarian thesis.... Bolstered by close analysis and chock full of intriguing examples of manufacturing triumphs and untapped opportunities, Fingleton's sobering report deserves close scrutiny by CEOs, labor leaders and policy makers." -- Publisher's Weekly.

• � Fingleton soars beyond today's major media dependence on glib business hype to pose a different economic future for the United States.... An important work; highly recommended for all academic libraries."-- Dale F. Farris, Library Journal

• � Fingleton is right on a basic fact. Manufacturing is and will remain the central economic activity in world trade. This book is best at its description of modern manufacturing processes .... and for its screeching critique of our Internet-obsessed business press. New Age gurus take deserved hard hits." -- James K. Galbraith, author of Created Unequal in the New York Times Book Review

• � While Fingleton's dour assessment of the new economy seems overdone, his basic argument about the relative worth of manufacturing is well articulated. In Praise of Hard Industries is a good contrarian read for policymakers, managers, and anyone interested in a different view of both the U.S. and Japanese economies." -- Harry C. Edwards, Business and Investing Editor, Amazon.com

• � Earlier this month, President Clinton crowed about the nation's steady economic growth over the last eight years. He told Nightly Business Report on PBS that a few consecutive quarters of low unemployment used to lead automatically to inflation. Not anymore, he said: "The laws are being rewritten."... Seen through Fingleton's lens, President Clinton is incorrect -- the important laws have not been rewritten, merely ignored. Economic success continues to flow to nations with advanced manufacturing bases. And what looks like a sustained boom for information-based economies will in the end turn out to have been a mirage." -- Bill Brazell, Industry Standard