Especially in the turbulence of the past five years, a number of articles have appeared in the press which give a layman's overview of Germany's economy. Sometimes these articles elucidate the structure of the economy in Germany; often such articles will seek to show how Germany keeps the Euro currency afloat. Sometimes they also compare the German economic structure with America's.
http://www.startribune.com/business/136776593.html?page=all&prepage=1&c=y#co
The link above is to an article entitled: What Minnesota Can Learn From Germany . [It is a from a local newspaper in Minnesota; it could easily read: What Pennsylvania Can Learn From Germany .] The author is Bill George, a professor of management practice at Harvard Business School. It is very accessible stylistically, and is around 300 words long.
Reading it will give you some insight into how Germany has kept the Euro afloat; and more importantly, you'll learn how Germany's economy remains relevant and powerful on a global scale.
