The new Asian hemisphere : the irresistible shift of global power to the East by Kishore Mahbubani

"Parag Khanna argued that there will be three global leaders in the new century: the US, the EU, and China. Mahbubani would like to add India, for he sees India as a bridge between the East and the West. This is a valid point since many Indian intellectuals are at home in both the East and the West. He claims there is still a resistance among public intellectuals and journalists in the West to accept the East on equal terms, but I myself have not seen this resistance. I see a greater recognition of the East almost on a daily basis. With Asia's growing economic power, political power will follow no matter how much real or imagined resistance there is." - Izaak VanGaalen

China in Africa by Chris Alden

"Nowhere in the world is China’s rapid rise to power more evident than in Africa. From multi-billion dollar investments in oil and minerals to the influx of thousands of merchants, laborers and cheap consumer goods, China’s economic and political reach is redefining Africa’s traditional ties with the international community. This book investigates the emerging relationship between China and Africa to determine whether this engagement will be that of a development partner, economic competitor or new hegemony. Alden argues that in order to understand Chinese involvement on the continent, we need to recognize the range of economic, diplomatic and security rationales behind Beijing’s Africa policy as well as the response of African elites to China’s entreaties. Only then can the new challenges and opportunities for Africa and the West be accurately assessed." - International African Institute

U.S. diplomacy since 1900 by Robert D Schulzinger

"Interest in U.S. foreign relations has soared to great heights in the early twenty-first century. Long admired as the most comprehensive and accessible American diplomacy survey available, U.S. Diplomacy Since 1900 has never been more relevant. Now in its sixth edition, the book chronicles the major events in the history of U.S. foreign relations, from the Spanish-American-Philippine War to the present. In this engaging narrative, Robert D. Schulzinger discusses public ideas about foreign relations and explains how U.S. foreign policy is made; he places U.S. foreign relations in the context of the growing interdependence and globalization of international affairs." - Oxford University Press

A choice of enemies : America confronts the Middle East by Lawrence Freedman

"Freedman makes clear how America's strategic choices in those and subsequent crises led us to where we are today. A Choice of Enemies is essential reading for anyone concerned with the complex politics of the region or with the future of American foreign policy." - Editorial Reviews

The candy bombers : the untold story of the Berlin Airlift and America's finest hour by Andrei Cherny

“Andrei Cherny’s The Candy Bombers is a gripping, suspenseful narrative history about the U.S. Cold War era pilots determined to help the freedom-strangled citizens of West Berlin survive Soviet tyranny. Written with incredible verve and vivid detail, Cherny succeeds in making those harrowing days of Berlin circa 1948-49 come alive. As a historian, he reminds me of Stephen Ambrose at his best.”-Douglas Brinkley

How we missed the story : Osama bin Laden, the Taliban, and the hijacking of Afghanistan by Roy Gutman

"Focusing principally on events and policy missteps in Afghanistan in the 1980s and 1990s, award-winning journalist Roy Gutman weaves a narrative that exposes how and why the U.S. government, the United Nations, and the Western media "missed the story" in the leadup to 9/11. He advances this narrative carefully and persuasively and approaches his subject with an objective, journalistic eye, drawing heavily on his own original research and extensive interviews with key players both in the United States and abroad. " - Editorial Reviews

China's inevitable revolution : rethinking America's loss to the Communists by Thomas D Lutze

"China's Inevitable Revolution explores this tumultuous and decisive battle. It tells the compelling story of assassination, repression, and protest in urban China. It reveals how America's fixation wtih the containing of Communism led in China to the constraining of democracy. In so doing, it demonstrates how America alienated the very democratic forces on which it pinned its hopes, thereby, ironically, contributing to the Communist victory." - Editorial Reviews

The arrow and the olive branch practical idealism in U.S. foreign policy by Jack Godwin

"From gunboat diplomacy to dollar diplomacy, from world war to limited war, cold war to preemptive war, The Arrow and the Olive Branch tells a unique version of American history and illuminates many of the international challenges we face today. Anyone who believes the old adage that politics should end at the water's edge will find this book to be an invaluable resource. Relying exclusively on primary documents rather than secondary sources, the book is carefully researched and strictly nonpartisan." - Editorial Reviews

Chinese strategic culture and foreign policy decision-making : Confucianism, leadership and war by Huiyun Feng

Examining the major academic and policy debates over China’s rise and related policy issues, this book looks into the motivations and intentions of a rising China.

Somoza and Roosevelt : good neighbour diplomacy in Nicaragua, 1933-1945 by Andrew Crawley

"Addressing the political, military, commercial, financial, and intelligence components of US policy from the onset of the Depression to the end of the war, Andrew Crawley analyses the background to the US military withdrawal from Nicaragua in the 1930s, assesses the motivations for Washington's policy of disengagement from international affairs, explores the circumstances surrounding the creation of Nicaragua's National Guard, and discusses US accountability for what the Guard and Nicaragua's government thereafter became under Somoza." - Editorial Reviews

Franklin Roosevelt's foreign policy and the Welles mission by Simon Rofe

"The book begins with a two-chapter historical overview of the circumstances that caused the United Nations to intervene in East Timor in 1999, and then continues with a detailed account of the referendum on independence and the military operations required to restore order after the Timorese people decided upon freedom from Indonesia." - Editorial Reviews

The secret war with Iran : the 30-year clandestine struggle against the world's most dangerous terrorist power by Ronen Bergman

"In response, and largely beneath the public's radar, a vast clandestine war has been fought with Iran and Hizballah on one side and the CIA, Israel's Mossad, and their European counterparts on the other. The full story of that secret war, told for the first time here, will fundamentally change the debate about U.S. national security priorities." - Editorial Reviews

Habits of empire : a history of American expansion by Walter T K Nugent

"Covering a lot of ground in a short space, Nugent handles the relationships among governments and government players with clear, straightforward prose and easy-to-follow analogies: "American procurement of the Hawaiian Islands may be thought of as filibuster in very slow motion." Challenging some of America's most cherished ideas about itself, Nugent exposes an unsettling reality that outsiders-i.e., victims of American expansion-see all too well. " - Publishers Weekly

Charm offensive : how China's soft power is transforming the world by Joshua Kurlantzick

"This book is the first to examine the significance of China’s recent reliance on soft power—diplomacy, trade incentives, cultural and educational exchange opportunities, and other techniques—to project a benign national image, position itself as a model of social and economic success, and develop stronger international alliances. Drawing on years of experience tracking China’s policies in Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Africa, Joshua Kurlantzick reveals how China has wooed the world with a "charm offensive" that has largely escaped the attention of American policy makers." - Editorial Reviews

Albania and the European Union : the tumultuous journey towards integration and accession by Mirela Bogdani

"It explores the political, economic and social transformations needed to make Albanian membership possible. The authors highlight the enormous democratic changes that have occurred in post-communist Albania as well as the many obstacles that still remain. This balanced and objective assessment will be an essential resource for everyone interested in the history and future of the Balkans and the EU." - Editorial Reviews

Marching toward hell : America and Islam after Iraq by Michael Scheuer

"Marching Toward Hell is not just another attack on the Bush administration. Rather, it sounds a critical alarm that must be heard in order to preserve the nation's security. Scheuer outlines the ways that America's foreign policy since the end of the Cold War has undermined the very goals for which we are fighting and played right into bin Laden's hands. ..." - Editorial Reviews

Asia eyes America : regional perspectives on U.S. Asia-Pacific strategy in the twenty-first century by Jonathan D Pollack

"Thirteen contributions by 13 international scholars and analysts are organized into four sections: American interests in a changing region, Asia's major powers and future American strategy, pivot points in regional security, and the road ahead for the U.S. and Asia." - bBNET

Nation building in South Korea : Koreans, Americans, and the making of a democracy by Gregg Brazinsky

"Brazinsky explains why South Korea was one of the few postcolonial nations that achieved rapid economic development and democratization by the end of the twentieth century. He contends that a distinctive combination of American initiatives and Korean agency enabled South Korea's stunning transformation. Expanding the framework of traditional diplomatic history, Brazinsky examines not only state-to-state relations, but also the social and cultural interactions between Americans and South Koreans. He shows how Koreans adapted, resisted, and transformed American influence and promoted socioeconomic change that suited their own aspirations. " - Editorial Reviews

2008 The World Today Series by Stryke-Post Publications

Global perspectives on the United States : a nation by nation survey by David Levinson

"Levinson and Christensen and a worldwide editorial board provide insight into the views of and perspectives on the U.S. and its government, people, policies, and culture. Although the editors had hoped to determine these perspectives based on key historical events such as the American Revolution, World Wars I and II, and the founding of the UN, they discovered that most nations form opinions of the U.S. by answering two questions—What has the U.S. done for or to us lately? and What may the U.S. do for or to us in the future? " - Booklist