And yet I got exactly the information I was looking for (within hours and from the author himself):
My book certainly dabbles in the Belgian, German, and English sour/funky beer traditions, but those weren’t the primary focus because Jeff Sparrow, Stan Hieronymus, and Ron Pattinson respectively beat me to the punch! It starts out with an overview of those country's traditions, and includes suggestions for beers to sample that illustrate them. As a way to give context to the beers and methods developed by US breweries over the last 20 years.
So thanks to Michael Tonsmeire and all others whom chimed with alternative suggestions..
I clearly touched a sore spot - it wasn't intentional..
As a humungous fanboy of Tonsmeire and his book, I think I know where Hjanderson is coming from. Although his tone may be misinterpreted, it's not the first time I have heard this sort of "confusion" if you will about the title of Mike's book. In fact, I was thinking about mentioning this in my review of his book on my youtube channel, but thought that it was nitpicking... perhaps I was wrong?
A European homebrewer once stated to me that he saw this book, but because it was titled "American" that it wouldn't apply to what he was trying to make at home, which was Belgian kriek. I explained to this fellow that some of the techniques in this book would indefinitely prove to be much easier than the spontaneous fermentation techniques that are traditional to Belgian brewing and described in "Wild Brews" and that he should most certainly buy "American Sour Beers" because, in essence, Americans have simplified the brewing of sour beers. He understood once I explained this to him.
The title of the book comes from the well-earned perspective of American brewers "reinterpreting" the sour brewing process, as Americans have done with others styles (such as IPA, barley wine, stout, etc). As a side effect, the title can come off as either ethnocentric or at least confusing to those who are more familiar with Belgian sour brewing. It's a catch 22, unfortunately, but in the end I think that the title "American Sour Beers" is the most appropriate title that Mike could have chosen. These are NOT lambic sour beers, they are NOT Flanders style beers. They are indeed "American" style beers, and although they can be similar in flavor profile to the Belgian styles, they are still fundamentally different due to the differences in brewing processes.
As supporters of this book and sour brewing at home, we should be aware of this misinterpretation of the book's title, and be mindful about informing those who misinterpret it as a book that they really should read.