Odd Arne Westad is the Elihu Professor of History and Global Affairs at Yale University and author and editor of fifteen books, including The Global Cold War, recipient of the Bancroft Prize, and Restless Empire, recipient of the Asia Society book award. He lives in New Haven, Connecticut.
"The Cold War evinces a lifetime of research and thought on the
subject. Compelling ideas and valuable insights appear
frequently."--National Interest
"[An] epic account...One reason Mr. Westad's narrative is so strong
is its use of fresh archival sources from across the globe...How
Big Was the Cold War? is easy to answer: It was huge, as this book
demonstrates, not only because of the perilous stakes but also
because of the size of the two main actors. How Deep Was the Cold
War? is also easy to answer, and Mr. Westad does that so very well,
showing how it reached into so many places in the world that were a
long way from the Berlin Wall."--Wall Street Journal
"[A] big, serious, and thoroughly intelligent stud[y] of the cold
war."--New York Review of Books
"[A] fast-paced narrative peppered with delightful snippets from a
broad range of sources... this volume should sit on the bookshelf
of every home as a constant reminder of how stupidity, ignorance
and arrogance almost brought the world to annihilation. With the
personification of all three traits now squatting in the White
House, this book has real and current value."--SouthChina Morning
Post
"[A] riveting historical compendium."--Independent
"[Westad] ably synthesizes contemporary scholarship to produce an
accessible narrative that provides a fresh perspective on the
conflict's pervasive global influence... an impressive feat that
will be appreciated by scholars, students, and general
readers."
--Publishers Weekly
"A clear and well-written summary of a global conflict... an
impressive book."--The Times
"A sweeping study.... In astute, thematic chapters, Bancroft
Award-winning historian Westad offers an excellent sense of the
ideological conflicts fulminating since the late 19th century that
formed the crux of the Cold War.... This is an enormous story, and
the author tackles it with admirable clarity and elegance.... A
tremendous and timely history lesson for our age."--Kirkus, starred
review
"An account of the Cold War that is truly global in its scope... a
wise and observant history... It also arrives at a moment when we
must grasp the dynamics of the Cold War if we want to understand
some of today's most urgent developments, from North Korea's
acquisition of long-range nuclear missiles to the rise of socialist
movements in Western democracies."--New Republic
"Arne Westad has produced a grand narrative of the Cold War.
Defining it as a struggle between capitalism and socialism as well
as a bipolar international system, he brilliantly illustrates its
ideological, geopolitical, technological, and economic dimensions.
Westad, the world's foremost scholar of the Cold War, once again
dazzles readers with the scope and depth of his analysis."--Melvyn
P. Leffler, Professor of American History, University of
Virginia
"Arne Westad provides a powerful analysis of why the Cold War
occurred, what it meant, and why it still matters. He is especially
strong in elucidating the ideas of perfection that drove very
imperfect, often brutal, leaders. Westad's book links the Cold War
to globalization, recent wars in the Middle East, and American
rivalries with Russia and China. This is a book that everyone
interested in politics and foreign policy should read. It is a
riveting story, told by one of the foremost world
historians."--Jeremi Suri, author of The Impossible Presidency
"For generations, the Cold War was context, the inescapable setting
of political life. This history sets the Cold War itself in
context, within the greater landscape of world history, deeply
understood, and masterfully presented. It is a powerful synthesis
by one of our great historians."--Timothy Snyder, author of
Bloodlands
"In many ways, Westad has long argued, the Cold War made the world
what it is today. His latest book is an eloquent and enjoyable
defense of that proposition."
--Foreign Policy
"Rather than offering a straightforward historical overview, The
Cold War delves much deeper, examining the philosophies
underpinning the conflicting ideologies and the influence the
systems had on their societies and economies. These complex ideas
are written with great clarity and confidence, giving readers an
exciting prose that only occasionally feels turgid through
detail.... The book is a sobering opportunity to allow the recent
history to give perspective to our own times and the dangerous
ideas that persist."--Entertainment Focus
"Rich with details drawn from archival research and interviews with
politicians, soldiers, scientists and others who lived through the
cold war.... Westad, a specialist on China as well as on the cold
war, adds a valuable dimension with chapters on Asian countries and
Latin America.... [An] ambitious study, perspicacious and panoramic
in scope."--Financial Times, Best Books of 2017
"Thanks to Arne Westad, we can no longer think of the Cold War as a
two-player game. Westad gives us a new history of the rivalry
between capitalism and communism, tracing its origins back to the
1890s and showing that it had a kind of afterlife beyond the 1990s.
No one can match his ability to illuminate the linkages between the
Washington-Moscow rivalry that was the Cold War's fissile core and
the multiple "hot" wars that, on the periphery, constituted the
Third World's War."--Niall Ferguson, Hoover Institution, Stanford,
and author of Kissinger, 1923-1968
"This significant history is told with verve and spirit... An
essential book for all collections and one of the best written so
far on the Cold War."
--Library Journal
"Today, western attempts to contain radical Islamism continue an
us-and-them mentality. Angry Muslims decry the perceived
depredations of US imperialism and the infidel free market; the
threat posed by suicide bombers makes the old east-west rivalries
look almost manageable by comparison. Westad's huge, single-volume
history is the beginning of wisdom in these things."--Guardian
"Westad argues that the Cold War made the world what it is today.
Reading this fine history, it's difficult to disagree with him.
This is one of the best histories ever written on the Cold
War."--Omnivoracious
"Westad balances the grim nature of his study with sometimes
thrilling insights and constantly lively, almost conversational
prose. Even in a book-market glutted with Russia-centered
histories, this one stands out."--Open Letters Monthly
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