America and the Post Cold War World This work of non-fiction authored by Chollet and Goldgeiger chronicles a pivotal epoch in United States history, which was marked by the end of the Cold War and the beginning of the purported War on Terror. The authors dedicate most of the manuscript to the foreign policy and international developments that America faced during this interim between major, time-consuming wars. Nonetheless, there are some interesting domestic developments that they discuss as well, strictly within the context of how those events influenced the country's efficacy -- or lack thereof -- in foreign affairs.

In combing through this period which began on 11/9 of 1989 and ended on 9/11 of 2001 (which marked the fall of the Berlin Wall and the start of the War on Terror as denoted by the attack on the World Trade Center) the primary purpose of the authors is to glean insight into how this timeframe influenced the current international climate and the ongoing war. The authors take an extremely systematic, methodological approach to this endeavor by chronologically noting the major events that influenced the American presidents in office during this era. While devoting much of the work to the presidencies of both Bushes and Bill Clinton, the authors also consider the foreign policy developments that typified the tenures of British Prime Ministers John Major, Margaret Thatcher, and Tony Blair. By employing such a framework, the reader is able to glean the causes...

In such a way the authors illustrate the problems that each of the presidents inherited, and the various strengths and weaknesses in foreign policy evinced in them. The manuscript illustrates the long-term threats of Al-Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden, and alludes to Clinton's attempts to apprehend/assassinate him.
Analysis

There are a couple of eminent boons associated with this manuscript and the work of Chollet and Goldgeier. One of the most commendable aspects of this book is the very subject matter. American history in general does not spend enough time detailing the period between the end of the Cold War and the beginning of the War on Terror. By presenting some of the most major events that happened with America's foreign policy during this time period, the authors are able to give due credit to what was actually -- in light of contemporary events -- a fairly influential era. The current War on Terror is little more than an attempt of the U.S. To erect a form of global imperialism. This plan could not have been effected with the Soviet Union in place and functioning as a world power with its own global objectives (communism). The authors of the book should be lauded, therefore, for identifying the critical events that took place in this time period that created the environment for the current global War on Terror.

Another advantage about reading…