James Goldgeier recommends The Back Channel: A Memoir of American Diplomacy and The Case for Its RenewalĪmbassador William J. It’s a timeless book, and an easy read to boot, with beautiful prose and clear takeaways. Brookings Senior Fellow Fiona Hill and Cliff Gaddy have woven together a brilliant and rigorous analysis of the man who rules Russia, made even more salient by recent developments. Putin,” and it is as relevant today as it was when it was originally published - perhaps even more so.
At the end of the day, the book is also a joy to read, a work of biography that reads at the pace of a vivid novel.
Through Packer’s “Our Man,” Holbrooke’s supreme lack of self-awareness, unrelenting belief in himself (maybe better described as arrogance), and dogged determination to solve hard problems become stand-ins for the same qualities in the United States. foreign policy from the 1960s to the 2000s. Told from the perspective of a Marlow-esque narrator, this book is equal parts an exploration of a deeply flawed yet brilliant American career diplomat, and a scathing discussion of the hubris and blind potential of U.S. Sam Denney recommends Our Man: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century
The book also explains how a country that has sustained one of the highest economic growth rates in the world can also simultaneously be “one broken government away from disaster.” In this case, the author articulates how the international community unfortunately set a precedence for aid dependence in the country that curtailed sustainable and diverse development, weakened the rule of law, and reduced governmental accountability. It is also good for those who are interested in the impacts of aid on governance in general. This book by Sophal Ear is a good start for those who want context and exposition to Cambodia’s decline in democracy and good governance after the massive effort of the international community to restore peace and stability to the post-conflict state. Azzam’s life is fascinating, and by examining it Hegghammer explains why and how the Sunni jihadi movement emerged when it did - the origin story of a movement that would produce groups like al-Qaida and the Islamic State.Īdrien Chorn recommends Aid Dependence in Cambodia: How Foreign Assistance Undermines Democracy Azzam was a scholar, a preacher, an organizer, a warrior, and many other things, and his call to action inspired thousands to join the anti-Soviet fight in Afghanistan. Thomas Hegghammer tells the story of the origins of the modern Sunni jihadi movement through the biography of Abdallah Azzam, one of its first leaders. The Caravan: Abdallah Azzam and the Rise of Global Jihad This book provides a comprehensive treatment of Boko Haram’s origins, and also situates the group within Nigeria’s complicated and little-understood political context. Nigeria is the seventh most populous country in the world it is about half Muslim and half Christian, and its post-colonial conception of nationalism conceals dangerous fissures. Boko Haram has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced more than two million others, but has not received enough attention globally, including from academics. This is a very lucid book by Alexander Thurston on Boko Haram’s deadly terrorist insurgency in Nigeria. Madiha Afzal recommends Boko Haram: The History of an African Jihadist Movement Here, people from across the Brookings Foreign Policy program offer their recommendations for books to enrich your understanding of the world outside your window. As the coronavirus outbreak keeps many of us confined to our homes, now may be a unique opportunity to tackle some long-form reading.