The appeal of pan-European identity construction to Europe s diverse peoples has been axiomatic in European studies. Markus Thiel s wide-ranging research into attitudinal data, individual citizen reactions, and media coverage bearing on transnational identification paints a picture of a European Union stumbling towards identity consensus rather than sprinting towards it. His in-depth case studies of Ireland, Britain, and Germany reveal how at best a bounded transnationalism - and at worst an old-school protective nationalism - are more probable identity responses than inclusive transnationalism and European cosmopolitanism. Euro-optimists will be chastened by Thiel s incontrovertible evidence highlighting the uneven movement towards convergence around European identity. - Raymond Taras, Willy Brandt Professor, Malmoe University and Professor of Political Science, Tulane University