This is political history at its best. Mark Gilbert tells the improbable story of Europe's integration with energy, erudition and verve, underlining how the nations of Europe have been able to work together without dissolving themselves into a full-blown, US-style federation. He shows a keen eye for the dynamic interplay of world-historical events, institutions, and political personalitiesfrom early Cold War tussles between Washington and Paris to Brexit battles between London, Berlin, and Brussels. Preferring the subtle techniques of the historical portraitist to the reductionist tools of the theorist, Gilbert sprinkles the pages with telling quotes and sound political judgments. Between those who cannot see for united Europe but a preordained path to success and those who keep predicting its unavoidable failure, he brilliantly shows us that the past was full of surprises. This stark reminder should also inform the thinking about Europe's future, as its nations severally and jointly search their way in a new era of great-power rivalry.