Customer Reviews

A World Transformed

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I'm no expert on the end of the Cold War, nor on the many issues Bush and Scowcroft discuss. There are too many people who argue that the end of the Cold War had everything or nothing to do with Ronald Reagan. As Bush and Scowcroft make plain, intentionally or not, change was coming around too quickly for anyone to claim credit. I know the standard story-line: Reagan raised defense spending and this drove the Soviets to spend until they collapsed. It's a simple story, but it leaves out far too much to be accurate. Bush was on the tail end of a decades-long strategy of containment; thankfully all presidents stood their ground in confronting the Soviets. Perhaps we should all recognize how fortunate we were to have Bush and Scowcroft in leadership positions for the four years they served as President and National Security Adviser. Admittedly cautious, they used their time wisely in dealing with the Soviet Union.

Very thorough in dealing with German reunification and in standing up to Saddam. It's amazing to read the Gulf War stuff: Bush and Scowcroft discuss the importance of alliances, the UN Security Council, containment, and the difficulties of urban warfare. Apparently someone's son did not read the book. Are we better off or worse off for that? Time will tell.

In a sense the book is not co-written because the two authors go back and forth in describing their different memories of the four Bush White House years. An original approach.

Unfortunately, no discussion on the U.S. invasion of Panama.

George Bush and Brent Scowcroft have written a great book about a fascinating subject. This is very engaging and at times is very much a page turner. I was left thinking that a more detailed account of history being made by the movers themselves may not exist. The end of the Cold War is a great story in and of itself, but also a story that could have had a very different ending were it not for the team that managed to bring it to a successful close.

This is a very honest book by honest men. Evenly though successful on all of the big issues, they write of miscues, uncertainty and difficulties in reaching the "right" decision. It is not a self-praise tome, but a book that is not afraid to lay out an accurate rendering of the facts and atmosphere. The reader has enough information and background to put himself in the role of President and ask, "What would I have done in that siguation." It's the mark of a thorough book.

One can not help but come away impressed by the Bush foreign policy apparatus and the President's own grasp of events, the players and the vital interests of the United States. He, aided by one of the best foreign policy / national security teams ever assembled, played America's hand superbly.

After reading this book, anyone who still believes that any President's main responsibility is "the economy, stupid" is.....well, stupid.

This book is the step by step discussion of the major foreign affaire issues that took place during first Bush presidency. To say this book is detailed would be to say the Battan Death March was a "tough hike". The book covers the years 1989 to 1991, more specifically (only) the massacre at Tiananmen Square, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of the USSR, and the Gulf War. The book is written in an interesting way - Bush and Scowcroft give their views on each of the issues and then combine for a third voice that gives more of a back ground commentary. We also get some of Bush's "dear diary" entries, which given he wrote the book, I wonder if we saw the original entries. This style does make the book more readable, although Scowcroft's writing could compete in excitement with watching grass grow.

Bush does come across as an excellent statesman in dealing with world leaders. He presents a warm down home type of President that worked with some of the leaders he dealt with. The reader also gets an interesting insight into some of the leaders that Bush dealt with (Hussain, Gorbachev and Kohl) to name a few. In the details of the Gulf War, he also comes off as being a skillful negotiator that kept the war effort together. I think it also shows that to be a good world leader you must develop personal relationships with other world leaders. Bush comes off as such a good foreign policy man that it almost adds to the impression that he had no clue what was going on at home.

Again, the book was full of details - - too much dry detail at times. Some of the talk about how minor issues were resolved could have been left on the cutting room floor and the book would have been the better for it. I did feel that we were short-changed on the Tiananmen Square uprising in China. I also felt that there was just too much time spent on Russia that could have been spent covering the Panama Invasion or the start of the Somalia effort. Overall, the book was very detailed and interesting. As it was almost a memoir, I would look to a few other books on the topics to form of full opion of the issues, as the author's may have been a bit bias.

G. Bush gives us his acount of how things occured during his administration. It is always tough to be totally unbiased when writing about oneself. But I think that he does about as good of a job as can be expected. I was impressed with the detail that I was presented with. I did not read this book for the purpose of being moved by action packed stories. I wanted a good insight into those difficult times towards the end of the Cold War and I got just that.

I did not have high expectations for this book, given the dramatically uneven quality of most historical memoirs. But Bush and Scowcroft's book manages to give a fly-on-the-wall view of the truly epoch-making events that took place on their watch. Now it's hard to believe that all this (and more) took place during only one presidential term, but it's clear that in the center of the storm there was a remarkably unified team with the ability to see a few steps ahead -- and even more importantly, understand the consequences of American action. It's not enough for the US to simply follow trends, sabre-rattle, or hew to the middle path. The crucial role of leadership, particularly in the face of dissent, comes through clearly.

The best feature about the book is undoubtedly the unique "three-voiced" way of telling the story -- Bush, Scowcroft, and the 'narrarator' that reflects both their input. I was skeptical that they'd be able to pull this off, but they did. While most historical memoirs either read like something put together by a staff of research assistants (Kissinger and Nixon's books come to mind) or are exercises in score-settling (Brzezinski, to a degree), this one really gives a sense of both mens' attitudes and beliefs -- and they're pretty forthcoming about both their counterparts and their own errors.

This makes one realize that Bush and his team get far too little credit for guiding the country, and indeed the world, through potentially destablizing events with steady hands. The breakup of the Soviet Union, the reunification of Germany and Desert Storm all could hardly have turned out better for democracy and freedom, and Bush should get a great deal more credit for that than he gets now. "A World Transformed" is also written with the average intelligent reader in mind, instead of the policy wonk. (Which makes one wonder, in retrospect, why Bush had such a hard time communicating with the American people in 1992). A worthy effort by two worthy public servants who, alas, are missed a great deal by their nation.

A vital part of understanding the end of the Cold War. The book is at its most vivid and engaging during it's description of the events leading up to the fall of the Berlin Wall, the unification of Germany and the Gulf War. Bush and Scowcroft tag team throughout the book and complement each other well. Bush's knack for incorporating anecdotes and his personal relationships with other world leaders serves him well here. However, the book is lacking in some areas, and I couldn't quite bring myself to give it 5 stars. While billed as a major part of the book, the section on the Tianamen Square uprising in China was not particularly detailed or illuminating. The book could have benefited from Bush and Scowcroft's perspective on the Panama Invasion, Somalia, and especially on the crucial decisions on US policy towards the breakup of Yugoslavia, which began on Bush's watch. Still, this is an amazing book and it was easy to feel swept up in events that many did not believe we would see happen in our lifetime, myself included. On par with the great books of international relations such as Kissinger's "A World Restored" and Acheson's "Present at the Creation."

Although they left office only six years ago, it seems the world they describe is nothing like the one today. The collapse of communism, the Gulf War, and the crackdown in China seem so far removed from the current Balkan battles and Asian/Russian economic woes.

The book is much more than a "kiss and tell" biography of the life and times of two during the Cold War. Bush and Scowcroft wisely limited their discussion to only a few matters and that allowed them to cover in more depth these important events than so many "What I Did in the White House" books that are on the market. Still, the hard core foreign affairs scholar may be seeking much more, but I think this is an important read for anyone wanting to know "how it was" at the end of the Cold War.

The book provides insight into these decisions that I found refreshing to read. It showed the personal nature that is important to diplomacy, and it spoke a great deal about trust. I don't want to sound too political because this is going to be the best history of one of the most important times since the end of World War II, but as you read about the negotiations and "first name" diplomacy practiced with incredible skill and character, you won't want to put down this book and read the newspapers because you'll just feel depressed about the current state of the Presidency.

As a friend of mine said, who hasn't yet finished the book, "It makes you long for the days when adults were in the White House."

President Bush and General Scowcroft give you a sense of the "figure it out as we go" excitement surrounding the events covered in the text: Russia, China, the Persian Gulf and Berlin. The Bush diary entries are heartfelt and moving adding a most personal dimension to the historical text. The interplay between President Bush's and General Scowcroft's entries also keeps the book very, very readable. The format makes the history come alive. Lastly, President Bush's humor comes through the page and adds a human touch to the activities of the principles. As important as were these events in our country's history, the principles working the issues were "regular" people serving the country as best they possibly could.

As a life-long "liberal" I was very skeptical of a book written by two Republicans, but also being fascinated by "geo-politics" I gave it a try - and WOW! was I surprised! What a marvelous book describing the 'behind the scenes' account of some of the most important and momentous events of the 20th century. By not focusing on domestic policies [i.e. politics] the book shows how deftly America (and Bush) managed these dramatic events (winning the Cold War, the Gulf War, etc.). In retrospect, it appears Bush served America very well and it is too bad he only served four years. In summary, politics (partisanship) aside, any reader interested in America's role in the dramatic geo-political events at the close of the 20th century will not be disappointed in this book!