The starting point for the book is fifteenth- and sixteenth-century northwest Europe, which seems rather curious considering the title of the book, and it is not unreasonable to expect a book about the postcolonial world to acknowledge the civilisations of Africa, Asia and South America. Hoogvelt, unfortunately seems to fall into the trap of framing the postcolonial countries within a Western viewpoint. However, this notwithstanding, she goes on to explain her standpoint with reference to these political and definitional problems and develops a thorough position from which to argue her case.