Overview

In 2008, when Michael McFaul was asked to leave his perch at Stanford and join an unlikely presidential campaign, he had no idea that he would find himself at the beating heart of one of today's most contentious and consequential international relationships. As President Barack Obama's adviser on Russian affairs, McFaul helped craft the United States' policy known as reset that fostered new and unprecedented collaboration between the two countries. And then, as U.S. ambassador to Russia from 2012 to 2014, he had a front-row seat when this fleeting, hopeful moment crumbled with Vladimir Putin's return to the presidency. This riveting inside account combines history and memoir to tell the full story of U.S.-Russia relations from the fall of the Soviet Union to the new rise of the hostile, paranoid Russian president. From the first days of McFaul's ambassadorship, the Kremlin actively sought to discredit and undermine him, hassling him with tactics that included dispatching protesters to his front gates, slandering him on state media, and tightly surveilling him, his staff, and his family. From Cold War to Hot Peace is an essential account of the most consequential global confrontation of our time.

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9781665138116

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Reviews

"""An expert political chronicle that often reads like a fast-paced thriller."" -- ""Booklist (starred review)"" ""Careful about providing evidence for his hard-earned opinions, [McFaul] is always clear and successfully assesses the level of complexity we lay-readers need to understand academic theories about revolutions and economics."" -- ""Christian Science Monitor"" ""McFaul combines both analytical and personal perspectives to offer a fascinating and timely account of the current crisis in the relationship between Russia and the United States."" -- ""New York Times Book Review"" ""McFaul succeeds, shedding needed light on the most geopolitically competitive relationship of the last seventy-five years and attempting to explain the 'why and what' of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election."" -- ""Guardian (London)"" ""This engaging account tells much beyond an ambassador's journal...A fine narrative of the rise and decline of America's Russian policy in the Obama year."" -- ""Library Journal (starred review)"" ""Vigorously argued."" -- ""Washington Post"""

An expert political chronicle that often reads like a fast-paced thriller. -- Booklist (starred review) Careful about providing evidence for his hard-earned opinions, [McFaul] is always clear and successfully assesses the level of complexity we lay-readers need to understand academic theories about revolutions and economics. -- Christian Science Monitor McFaul combines both analytical and personal perspectives to offer a fascinating and timely account of the current crisis in the relationship between Russia and the United States. -- New York Times Book Review McFaul succeeds, shedding needed light on the most geopolitically competitive relationship of the last seventy-five years and attempting to explain the 'why and what' of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. -- Guardian (London) This engaging account tells much beyond an ambassador's journal...A fine narrative of the rise and decline of America's Russian policy in the Obama year. -- Library Journal (starred review) Vigorously argued. -- Washington Post

Author Information

Michael McFaul is professor of political science, director and senior fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University, and a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. He served for five years in the Obama administration, first at the White House as special assistant to the president and senior director for Russian and Eurasian affairs at the National Security Council, then as U.S. ambassador to the Russian Federation. Dr. McFaul is also an analyst for NBC News and a contributing columnist to the Washington Post. He has authored or coauthored several books, including Russia's Unfinished Revolution: Political Change from Gorbachev to Putin. Dr. McFaul was born and raised in Montana. He received his B.A. in international relations and Slavic languages and his M.A. in Soviet and East European studies from Stanford University, then completed his D. Phil. in international relations at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. L. J. Ganser is the winner of the prestigious Audie Award for Best Nonfiction Narration for his work in The Island at the Center of the World. He has recorded over 450 titles, ranging from preschool books to crime noir thrillers, from astronomical adventures in both science and science fiction, to Arctic Circle high school basketball stories.

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