From the Back Cover
Much more than just another anecdotal survey of embassy life abroad, however, Harper's work traces the hard-earned acquisition of his own geopolitical philosophy, played out against the tapestry of his Southern youth, war service and "35 years as a professional observer" in Africa and Europe. The explication of his laws, and the fascinating bases surrounding their formulation, are related with Harper's singular wit and erudition, as are suggestions for across the board reforms that are at once revolutionary and commonsensical.
In Unintended Consequences, Edward Harper successfully weds manner to matter; his prose artfully detailing the story of a life lived with -- what can only be termed -- an enviable vitality.
About the Author
After working as a reporter for the Sanford, Florida Herald, United Press and Minneapolis Tribune, Mr. Harper was an editor for Radio Free Europe in Munich and representative of a flour company in West Africa. He first entered the career diplomatic service in 1951 and served as vice consul and third secretary for three years in Vienna before resigning to marry a Viennese. He reentered the Foreign Service in 1967, serving as press attachi in Warsaw, Ankara and Madrid and as counselor of embassy in east and west Berlin. He directed a press center for Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in Damascus during his shuttle diplomacy in 1973, and he ran press centers for presidential visits to Bucharest, Belgrade, Warsaw and Paris. Mr. Harper's previous books, all novels, are The Assassin, and Janine (under his own name) and The Chinese Ultimatum (with Robin Moore), The Last Caesar, The Orpheus Circle and The Hearacles Commando (under the pen name Edward McGhee).
His numerous published articles have appeared in various travel magazines and in the "About Men" column of the New York Times.
Edward Harper has two sons, Alec and Steven. At present, he makes his home in Washington, D.C.
