Madam Secretary: A Biography Of Madeleine Albright

Madam Secretary: A Biography Of Madeleine Albright

Product Description Offers a look at the first woman to serve as this countrys Secretary of State in her roles as diplomat, role model, and mother, drawing on interviews and anecdotes from friends, adversaries, and colleagues. Includes b&w photos. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or. From Library Journal Blood, CEO of a lobbying firm and a member of the Democratic National Committee, offers the first book-length account of the first woman appointed U.S. secretary of state. Focusing on the years Albright taught at Georgetown University through her high-profile tenure as United Nations ambassador, he gives excellent coverage to such matters as her role in the replacement of U.N. Secretary General Boutros Boutros Ghali and the behind-the-scenes events leading to her cabinet appointment. Though his account is detailed, Blood relies largely on newspaper and magazine interviews and articles for source material and does not give footnotes. For public libraries and womens studies collections.?Jill Ortner, SUNY at Buffalo Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Kirkus Reviews A slapdash effort, lacking in critical perspective and reading like a background report for an Albright for President campaign. Blood, a lobbyist and trustee of the Democratic National Committee, is so gushing about his subject that he may have unwittingly created a new phenomenon: damning with great praise. For example, after Albrights appointment as UN representative, it is claimed that she singlehandedly transformed her post from mere messenger to chief architect and articulator of American foreign policy. Chief architect? Given this heady position it might seem difficult to explain foreign policy failures without tarnishing Albrights image, but when Blood looks at the Somalia fiasco, there is an answer, for she was proactively excluded from the policy-making process. The hyperbole is actually cranked up another notch upon her ascent to secretary of state: Blood claims that Albright is the first person since John F. Kennedy to establish a personal connection between American foreign policy and the rest of the world, and that people flock to see [her] like a rock star. By the end of the book one expects Albright to don a costume with a large S on the chest and fly off to save the world. Refusing to mention anything that could be characterized as criticism and recognizing only superior personal qualities is ultimately a disservice to Albright, however. She probably is a fine person and an outstanding public servant, but we all know that when issues are serious and complex, no person or policy can always be right; painting inherently gray material strictly in black-and- white only serves to irritate readers and leave them wondering about Albright as well as the author. If Albright is nearly as upright and moral as the person portrayed in this volume, she will surely be embarrassed by it. (24 b&w photos, not seen) -- Copyright 1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.