Critics' Opinion:
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Published Mar 2022
416 pages
Genre: Biography/Memoir
Publication Information
An inspiring and urgent memoir by the US Ambassador to Ukraine who electrified the nation by speaking truth to power.
By the time she became US Ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch had seen her share of corruption, instability, and tragedy in developing countries. But it came as a shock when, in early 2019, she was recalled from her post after a smear campaign by President Trump's personal attorney and his associates—men operating outside of normal governmental channels, and apparently motivated by personal gain. Her courageous participation in the subsequent impeachment inquiry earned Yovanovitch the nation's respect, and her dignified response to the president's attacks won our hearts. She has reclaimed her own narrative, first with her lauded congressional testimony, and now with this memoir.
A child of parents who survived Soviet and Nazi terror, Yovanovitch's life and work have taught her the preciousness of democracy as well as the dangers of corruption. Lessons from the Edge follows the arc of her career as she develops into the person we came to know during the impeachment proceedings.
"Lessons From the Edge is a brilliant, engaging, and inspiring memoir from one of America's wisest and most courageous diplomats. More than just a vivid exposition of the events leading up to Donald Trump's first impeachment, Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch has written a timely and authoritative account of U.S. policy towards the former Soviet Union. This book is essential reading for current policymakers, aspiring diplomats, and anyone who cares about America's role in the world." —Madeleine K. Albright, former US Secretary of State
"First through the breach, Ambassador Yovanovitch showed Americans what courage and patriotism looks like when she risked everything by speaking truth to power, and exposing corruption in the highest offices in the land. Her deeply personal account is essential reading for anyone interested in how diplomacy really works, and how a selfless public servant can stand up to even the most powerful man in the world. More than essential reading, Lessons from the Edge is thoroughly engaging, and impossible to put down, showing us how a very private, even introverted, career diplomat, overcame the most vicious of smear campaigns to become a foreign service legend." —Congressman Adam Schiff
"Ambassador Yovanovitch was the victim of a vicious 'political mugging,' driven by the private interests of numerous individuals in Ukraine and America, including, most shockingly, the President of the United States. Her dismissal from post in Kyiv marked a cruel end to the illustrious career of one of the most respected diplomats in the U.S. Foreign Service. It also helped spark a chain of events that led to Donald Trump's first impeachment. This memoir, at turns moving and gripping and always inspiring, is a powerful testament to a uniquely American life well-lived and a remarkable career of dedicated public service at the highest levels of government." —Fiona Hill, Senior Fellow, the Brookings Institution, and New York Times best-selling author of There Is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the Twenty-First Century
"Written with the humility of a true public servant and a novelist's eye for detail, Ambassador Yovanovitch's memoir takes readers inside the fast-paced world of modern diplomacy and lays bare the rot and corruption of the Trump administration. Lessons From the Edge offers a sobering account of the abuse of power at the highest levels of our government, but also provides inspiring insights into how public servants with a commitment to justice and democracy can safeguard and help preserve our system." —William S. Cohen, former US Secretary of Defense
"Diplomats are the military's indispensable partners—the protectors of the protectors. In this riveting, fast-paced account of her thirty-three years in the U.S. Foreign Service, Marie Yovanovitch reveals how our diplomats serve as the front line of our national security. She convincingly argues that active U.S. engagement overseas makes for a better world and a more secure America, and she sounds the alarm about the threats we face from an increasingly emboldened Russia. Lessons from the Edge is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding how best to advance U.S. interests abroad." —General John Abizaid (US Army, Ret.), former commander of US Central Command, and former senior defense adviser to Ukraine
"Captivating… a compelling memoir of diplomatic service behind the old Iron Curtain." —Kirkus Reviews
"A gripping account … Full of shrewd insights and bitter ironies, Yovanovitch's saga offers a revealing insider's take on the labyrinth of foreign policy and on one of the most sordid episodes of Trump's presidency." —Publishers Weekly
This information about Lessons From The Edge was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Marie Yovanovitch served as US Ambassador to Ukraine, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan, in addition to numerous other senior government positions. She retired from the State Department in 2020 and lives in the Washington, DC, area.
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