Customer Reviews

The Unfinished Presidency: Jimmy Carter's Quest for Global Peace

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This was and excellent book, focusing on President Carter's life after his 1980 loss to Ronald Regan. The president allowed the author, who had complete access to President Carter's records, to interview him several times. Thus the author was able to gain tremendous insight into Carter's personality.

From his involvement in Habitat for Humanity to his efforts in the Middle East Peace Process, the author beautify weaves the character of Jimmy Carter with historical events. The book reads with the ease of fiction.

An enjoyable, contemporary history about a unique individual, it was a pleasure to read.

This book provides insight into the life of Jimmy Carter after his defeat to Reagan in 1980. Every chapter divulges new aspects of Carter's amazing post-presidential life. Brinkley has managed to present an accurate picture of Carter that does not gloss over or mock his faith. Well done!

To the below reviewer who wrote that "Carter has not done an intelligent thing since leaving office", I would say that you are entitled to your opinion but you obviously did not read this book. To make such an assertion needs factual backing. You can say that Carter failed as a civilian ambassador but you cannot deny that he and his Carter Center helped forge peace, eradicate numerous illnesses, free thousands of political prisoners, and inspire millions. That is a viscious, partisan attack and has no place in a review of this book. Interesting to note that outside of the US, world leaders and people would heartily disagree with any assessment of Carter that fails to acknowedge his monumental contributions to peace and human rights. I defy you, after reading this book, to list a single modern president who has done more than Jimmy Carter.

Regardless of how one feels about Jimmy Carter the fact is that he has become one of the most admired men in the United States and one of the most beloved Americans in the world. He left office after being voted out in a landslide and with some of the worst poll numbers in history. Now, his poll numbers are very high and any time a conservation turns to Carter someone will almost certainly say that they think Carter is the best ex-President we have ever had or the most moral man to have been in the White House in years and years. This turn around occurred in less than twenty years, and that the turn around occurred is a fact not open to question. The real question is; how and why did it happen?

That's the question Douglas Brinkley attempts to answer with this book. Brinkley basically starts with Carter's 1980 defeat and follows Carter's career for the next twenty years. On this journey the reader will meet Jimmy Carter the Baptist missionary, the Habitat carpenter, the lay physician out to heal the world, and the ex-President who refuses to profit from his former office but is at the same time a tireless fund raiser for his Carter Center. We also get to see the tireless diplomat who is willing to put himself in great personal danger to try and secure a peaceful resolution to conflicts around the world. This is truly a man who takes to heart his faith and the teachings of Jesus Christ. On the other hand we also see a somewhat darker side of the former peanut farmer. We see an ego as big as all outdoors, a tendency to grandstand, a self-righteous zealot, and a serious stubborn streak. The reader will also find a great clue in Carter's post presidency to the failure of his administration. The aforementioned faults of course did not help his presidential efforts but it may well have been his inability to prioritize that lead to his political downfall. It seems that Carter will give small details and events the same attention he gives to massive undertakings without taking into account the real importance of the event. One can easily see how a President with this trait would very quickly become bogged down and accomplish very little.

Brinkley does an excellent job of telling this remarkable story. He had access to both President and Mrs. Carter along with their papers and also did many interviews with their fellow workers and friends. Interestingly, many of the people who had worked with Carter on some of his projects critiqued some of the draft chapters and pointed out mistakes. Make no mistake, most of these people are Carter intimates but steadfast Republican James Baker is also among those who offered both insights and critiques. The writing style that is found in this book is generally easy to read although the narrative does seem to drag in places. The biggest fault I could find in this book is the printing. I read the paperback version and the printing is tiny. I suppose that in discussing Jimmy Carter, Biblical type print is understandable but it still hurts the eyes. Still, this book is well worth the effort so break out the bifocals and enjoy.

If you are even slighly interested the post-presidential career of Jimmy Carter, this book is a great work of art! I knew that President Carter was a hard working, great man; I just did not realize How Hard Working, Caring, and Diligent President Carter actually is. He is defintely a man that is a great role model for all people that are interested in running for a political office, or wish to live peacefully on planet earth. Mr Brinkley does a fabulous side of pulling us in to the Carters' world, educating us, and entertaining us. This is a GREAT book!

This book is outstanding. I was stupid enough to fall for Reagan in 1980, and I voted for Reagan in 1980. What an idiot I was voting for this immoral man. Carter, on the other hand, is a sincere and goodhearted person; he has a heart of gold. The reader below from NYC obviously didn't even read the book. I did, and I highly recommend it.

Who would have thought back in 1980 that Jimmy Carter would not only reclaim a great reputation, but that his accomplishments and public standing since losing to Ronald Reagan would be so much better than during his years as U.S. president? Brinkley does a tremendous job both at detailing what Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter have done in the last 15+ years and at getting to the core of what motivates their actions and their lives. Brinkley's examination of the Carter's strong Christian beliefs is a good reminder that there is a moral Christian majority in America that doesn't need the divisive tactics of Jerry Falwell or Phyllis Schlafley and simply opts for practicing what they preach, so to speak. Love him or hate him, Jimmy Carter has always been true to his visions of a better America. To see him put those visions to work instead of fading into the sunset is inspiring, and this book goes a long way in showing how he and Rosalynn Carter did it.

Just watching the news and reading the papers over the years one would see a story here and there about Jimmy Carter, but until I read this book I really did not have a good appreciation for just how many issues / events he has been involved with over the years. This book covers the last 15 + years sense he was President. What really interested me was not the good work he does for Habitat for Humanity, but the freelance diplomatic work he seams to always be getting involved with. The list of countries and wars he has visited and worked to bring peace on is a top ten list of some of the least pleasant places on the planet. It is clear to me that he is doing the work for a greater propose then getting a free trip.

I also did not realize the level of his ego; it could possibly be the most unattractive character trait that came through in the book. Many times I was thinking to my self that Carter really did not have the status to be demanding from the current Presidents all the information and private briefings that he asks for and receives. We can all see that he does help, but the flip side of the issue is that some times he probably can cause extra difficulty for the current administration. A case in point would have been the Gulf War. I found the descriptions of his interacting with the Presidents after him to be the most interesting part of the book.

Overall this was an interesting and insightful book. I did not realize that Carter was involved in so many good projects. My only complaint is that I found the non-political stuff less interesting, but it was needed to give a full picture of the man. If you have an interest in Jimmy Carter or just global politics in the last 20 years then you will probably enjoy this book.

I believe that most of the other reviews reflect my opinion of the book, and the man. While he has his flaws, ego not being the least of them, he has done more in his post-presidency than virtually any other individual who has held that office in the last century. What I would like to point out, however, is that the one very negative review below has false or grossly misleading statements in it. Far from supporting Daniel Ortega, Jimmy Carter was the person who persuaded the former President and Sandinista leader to concede his electoral defeat, very likely averting a civil war. Almost every scholar and political analyst will tell you that Carter also helped avert a potentially devastating war on the Korean Peninsula by his travel there in 1994. I suspect that many leaders, while they may be reluctant to admit it, take his advice deadly seriously.

One of the most important themes that the reader discovers in this book is that Mr. Carter sincerely believes in what he does. You will find that some of his actions made him unpopular with the presidents who succeeded him, but that never deterred him from pressing on. Above all else, you learn of the sincerity of the man, his undying determination to make the world a better place, a safer place, a healthier place. Mr. Brinkley's research is thought out, and his writing is easy to understand. I found some of the chapters to be a little confusing in their organization, and would have preferred more chapters...with less material covered in them. But that is a small criticism that should not prevent you from adding this book to your political/historical bibliography.

This book is a perfect example of the phrase "only time will tell." Only now are people beginning to see what sort of a president Jimmy Carter really was. I was too young during the Carter administration to understand what sort of presidency he had. This book gave me the opportunity to see the aftermath of Carter's presidency and his activities as a citizen. Although the writing is sometimes a bit dry and wordy, the information is fascinating and presents Jimmy Carter as the multifaceted and intriguing individual that he is. It's too bad that it took us this long to discover his value.